Walks in September.

I suppose any talk about Borris should start by saying that he is a very “difficult” animal. And that’s me putting it mildly.

If he stays too long inside the courtyard, he gets very anxious, builds up a lot of energy that needs to be consumed or else Mum’s flowers and our cats will suffer. So this summer I tried to take him out for walks as often as possible. Of course, I first had to replace the other leash he broke and then repair the new one he broke, but in the end I managed to subdue the “beast” (more or less).

I try to keep off the busy streets, because people don’t seem to like him very much. And I avoid the areas where I know stray dogs will be lurking about, because apparently they like him too much. It usually takes 300 meters from my gate before Borris realizes he’s not gonna be pulling me the whole way, and then another 20 minutes or so until he sees that he can’t go and make “friends”. But if I were to take him out every day, I know things would get better. And just like all unemployed-on-holiday-students, I can’t find the time… .

Yes, it sounds like I’m being mean to my dog, being too lazy to take him out sometimes, I know, but we understand each other so well! We’re very alike you see: he eats like a bear, I eat like a bear (a very cute bear!), he likes to lie in the shade all day, I like to lie in the shade all day, he likes to run around, I like to run around, sometimes he’s too bored and lazy to go after the ball, sometimes I’m just as lazy to get out of the house, he enjoys biting (more like pinching, but with his teeth) people’s bottoms, I enjoy… well… 🙂 something similar. Anyway, you get the idea… so Borris totally understands my lazy behavior cause he’s very much like me.

(photos with pond area taken by me, using my self timer skills)

We both love our freedom to get what we want and go where we want when we want… the only difference is I won’t bite the people who stand in my way.

And as far as our walks are concerned, I suppose they make my day a little more interesting… the adrenaline I get from taking him out is the equivalent of five coffees.

A short story about Borris.

I love all my pets, but I must confess that Borris is the funniest on film. I took these videos using a very poor phone-camera, but I think Borris makes up for this by being such a sweet goof. We’ve had him for almost a year, so this is supposed to be something nice and symbolic, even though he will never watch this and/or appreciate my “work”. The editing is primitive, but it’s the footage that matters :). Hope you like it!

About Borris: He’s not fat, he just has a lot of fur. My parents tried to brush it out one day with a rake. They managed to take out most of the hair off his back, but left out his head and tail, so now he walks around looking like he has a hole in his coat, right where he was brushed. When he was very little, he ripped at least ten pairs of trousers, and kept pulling other clothes off the line to chew, until we finally trained him to stick to his own rags and footballs. He does not drink water out of anyone else’s bowl but his own. He does not even drink out of puddles. When you’re not paying attention, he will knock you down by running straight into you. He loves little kids, especially when he can jump on them. But then again, he likes jumping on almost anyone who comes through our gate. Unfortunately, people don’t see him as a puppy, so this behavior does not seem at all playful. He’s good with cats, so long as there’s no food involved. He loves his leash, and he’s always happy to explore outside the courtyard, where there are more trees and bushes to mark. He has no preferences in food, so long as it keeps on coming. He knows how to sit, stay, lie down, shake and fetch, but that doesn’t mean he’s always in the mood.

And despite all the mischief he gets into, and all the messes he makes, and all the dirt and drool he leaves on us, we’re very fond of our “little” Borris and we look forward to many more years together.

Of course, it so happened that I found this MUCH better video with Borris later today, after I had worked last night on the first one. Oh well, here’s my Mum with Borris, the videos were taken by my Dad with a proper camera. Here you can truly see how he’s grown, and how furry he really is! 😀