Quarantining with the pups
Are you a dog person or a cat person? Both? By necessity, I am a dog person, for cats stir up my allergies like nothing else on the planet. Dogs have no effect on my sensitive sinuses.
I have written of our two ranch dogs, Punkin’ (female) and Roshi (male). They are affectionate, loyal, and enjoy cruising our New Mexico property. For the most part, however, they stay indoors. In front of one of our large front-facing windows sits a love seat, and the two pups love to sit at the top of the cushions and survey their baronial kingdom.
Nowadays this consists of randomly barking at the cows that have recently come to join us. The cows regard them with heavy-lidded contempt, and I am not sure as to what purpose the pups are barking.
Are they saying, “Get off my lawn?” Well, “lawn” being a euphemism, in that in New Mexico it would probably to “Get off my sand/rocks!”
Are they announcing, “Hey folks, there are large-hooved creatures just steps from our front door?”
Eventually they tire of taunting the animals. They come back inside, get a drink of water, and take a nap.
The two pups are the first canines that we have felt the need to take to a groomer. I would describe our animals as medium haired, in that my amateur call is that the two have medium length hair.
The New Mexico sun can be brutal, and we like to keep the two trimmed for the late spring through the end of fall, but our groomer has been closed due to the Quarantine. So we ordered some clippers.
I own my own set of clippers due to the fact that I’ve sported facial hair for decades, and I am not interested in the “Brooklyn Beard” look. That being said, I have a certain familiarity with clippers.
My bride, the dean, took the lead and trimmed Roshi first.
I guess they were used to their regularly scheduled visits to the groomer, for the pups sat quietly during the process. We trimmed one dog on one day and then the other the next.
Well. The good news and the not so good news:
Their hair is definitely trimmed, and we feel that their comfort level is way up the chart. They don’t seem to be panting so hard and they are running around in their usual frisky way.
The bad news? If one used a weed wacker on an animal with no harm to said pup’s health, that is what our pups look like. I know it was our first time, and that the dogs are cooler, but aesthetically, they appear perhaps as a dog imagined by Juan Miro.
For Punkin’, the hairier of the two, the pile of fur left in the wake of her cutting was equal to the actual dog. We are going to attempt a second session to give a bit of finesse to the cut, but wowza, the results!
Several folks on social media have asked for pictures of the recently shorn Roshi and Punkin’. Not a chance.
Other social media pals have indicated that they studied Youtube videos of pet trimming and attempted to replicate. Our friends have noted limited success and several abject failures.
So this beautiful New Mexico morning Roshi and Punkin’ are napping peacefully on the back of the sofa. They harbor no ill feelings at all. They know that their debut at the Westminster Kennel Show is a nonstarter.
We will get better at the business of puppy trimming. I guess.
In the meantime, I noticed my shadow while outside this morning. It appeared that there was all manner of hair sticking out at strange angles from my head.
Oh lordy, I think the bride is going to have to grab the human clippers.
Do not stay tuned for pictures.
Stay safe and sane.
Former Roman Harry Musselwhite is the author of “Martin the Guitar,” co-creator of “The Dungball Express” podcast and is an award-winning filmmaker.