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dogs and fireworks

I’m always concerned about the dogs on the 4th. This year, with PGI visiting—along with Keesha and Tucker—there were two more dogs to be worried about. We were gone for part of the day, but made sure to be back in the early evening before the fireworks really began.

Throughout the evening, Tucker—mostly deaf and mostly blind—was oblivious to it all, perfectly content. Dexter, surprisingly, ignored all the noise. Daisy was a little worked up about it, but I was able to keep her calm just by keeping a hand on her.

By dusk, fireworks were going off at random around the neighborhood. We brought the dogs in at that point. Both Keesha and Daisy were concerned about these fireworks, and both became very nervous. Daisy paced and barked for a bit, and then laid at my feet. Keesha panted heavily and paced, then finally pressed herself into a spot between the couch and the armchair.

However, once the big shows started we got the big booming thunder of the Eliot Bay show (the Ivars show), ground-shaking and deep, and periodic booms from the Lake Union show. Both Daisy and Keesha got pretty worked up. I was able to to calm Daisy with a few reassuring words. Keesha began to pace back and forth from the guest bedroom and the living room. This is when I first noticed Dexter. He began working his way close to her each time she would stop for a moment in the living room. After a few minutes pacing she laid down. As soon as she did, Dexter pressed in close to her, nosed her muzzle a couple times, and then laid down as well, half on top of her. The fireworks continued on for another 15 minutes and Dexter remained there, pressing hard into/onto Keesha. She attempted to get up once, and Dexter refused to move, keeping her pinned. She gave up immediately. Once the fireworks were over and Keesha calmed down, Dexter got up and went back to his bed.

It’s hard to describe here in writing, but it was an amazing thing to witness. He seemed so conscious of what he was doing, so aware. And he did seem to help. I was really pleased to witness this behavior, and am continually amazed at the complexity of pack behavior in general. The more I learn about dogs, the more—it seems—there is to learn.

I can no longer imagine life without the presence of a dog.

- posted 7 July 2004 in blog Favorites

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