Sookie's Grand Adventure

The loud, excited bark coming from the kitchen makes me chuckle. It means Sookie is ready for another adventure.

Sookie is the fourteen-year-old, ten pound shih tzu who thinks she runs this house. Actually, she’s probably right.

When she barks for my attention and I don’t move fast enough, she stands at the end of the hall and gives me The Look. It reminds me of the face of an impatient woman with her hands of her hips as she taps her foot. I hop to it. Every time.

When I get to the door now, I get that look. it is clear that I am way too slow. Something important is happening. She needs to get outside.

Sookie imagines herself a wolf chasing its prey. Of course, the prey in our yard is pretty limited, mainly a few rabbits and a lot of small birds. She could never catch any of them but the fun is in the hunt.

Then there are the squirrels. They are a whole different thing. They chase each other around the yard, steal seed from the bird feeders, and race up and down the trees, especially the tree that hangs above the deckrailing. Someday, she is going to catch one to be her friend and play with her. Sookie is not much of a predator.

The squirrels are also ready for a chance to play and they found a game to play with Sookie even though she doesn’t know it. When she is in the kitchen, a squirrel will come down from the tree to sit on the deck railing. It will sit there licking its paws, eating the seeds it has stolen, swishing its tail as Sookie’s jumping at the patio door, barking, growling desperate to get out.

The squirrel could keep this going for a long time if I didn’t interrupt the standoff by opening the glass doors. Sookie’s muscles are already tense ready to spring into action when the door opens. She bursts out racing toward her prey. The squirrel is still sitting there. Sookie is getting close. She is almost at the railing. This time she will catch it. Two more steps. One more step and she’ll get it. The squirrel jumps into the tree.

Sookie races to the other end of the deck and flies down the steps to get to the trunk of the tree and bark at the squirrel who is now running up the tree far above her. Oh well, maybe tomorrow will be the day or maybe the day after that.

She’s determined that this game will not end until she catches a squirrel. In truth this game will never end. I don’t know if she really wants it to.

Sookie’s attention now turns to the shed at the other end of the yard. There have been rabbits there in the past but not right now. Disappointed, she decides to inspect the rest of the yard.

Just when she is getting bored, the new neighbor lets his small, fluffy, white dog out. That gives Sookie another reason to bark. After all, she needs to teach this new resident that she runs the neighborhood. When the much larger dogs on her street with their deep barks join the conversation, Sookie is proud that she has gotten the attention of the whole neighborhood.

Now she’s getting tired and hungry. It’s time to come inside.

She is back at the shed when I call her for dinner. She looks up and speeds toward the house with her tail in the air and her little legs pumping as fast as they can. In no time at all, she is coming up the steps with her little ears flapping.

Inside the house, Sookie jumps at my legs and happily lets me know all about her exciting adventure.

Tomorrow she will be ready for another adventure. So will the squirrel.

But tonight it’s time for supper and sleep.