365 Project – Day 219 – Rude

We need a doggy door, not because we are lazy or neglectful. Quite the contrary. I think most people would agree that our Electra is actually quite spoiled. It’s hard not to spoil a dog with a face as perpetually mopey as Electra’s, as if we are hoping that something–some treat, some car ride, some extra helping of kibble at dinnertime–would suddenly make that mournful expression melt away. We need a doggy door for the simple fact that our somber hound has suddenly begun to play practical jokes on us.

Allow me to illustrate.

Electra loves to be outside. We have a good sized yard with plenty of grass, a few trees and a whole mess of squirrels, rabbits, birds, and even a neighborhood cat that visit at their leisure throught the day. In short, it’s hound dog heaven out there. Lots of stuff to sniff within the confines of the fence.

So, Electra will ask to go out several times a day by sitting in front of the door and giving a deep whine. Sometimes, if she happens to spy one of the rabbits in the yard, she is not so subtle and she will bark madly and claw at the glass until we open the door. Then she will burst out, leaping off the top step like a rabid spider monkey, trying her damnedest to catch little Peter Cottontail before he can slip through one of the holes in the fence.

When Electra has had her fill of the Great Outdoors, she will return to the door and request re-entry to the house. Now, here’s the thing…our dog does not possess what some people call an “indoor voice”. She’s not a yappy dog by any means. In fact, many people go for months thinking that she is mute. But when she does bark, the sheer force of it can shatter glass and wake our neighbors three doors down. Her loud baritone voice is one that you might expect coming out of a St. Bernard or a Bull Mastiff.

The worst part though, is that Electra tends to have really bad timing and very little patience. Every time I get Cadence down for a nap, Electra decides she wants to go out, and then bellows loudly to be let back in. Every time. Without fail. And I have to leap out of the chair or run up the stairs from the basement to open the door and let her in before she wakes the baby.

Lately though, Electra seems to think that it is deliciously funny to come to the door…

Bark loudly to be let in…

Wait until one of us actually opens the door…

And then turn around, head back down the stairs and start another round of sniffing in the yard.

Seriously???

The first couple times it happened, we gave Electra the benefit of the doubt. We though maybe some interesting scent drifted by and caught her attention. But then it started to happen more frequently, and has gotten to the point where Steven will open the door, Electra will stand and stare at him for a moment, looking him square in the eyes, before doing a 180 and sauntering down the stairs.

You can almost hear her chuckle and say “Haha! Sucker!” as  she turns to walk away.

So, we need a doggy door, if for no other reason than we are getting a little tired of being dissed by our dog.

Tonight’s 365 Project is dedicated to our favorite Electra. She’s lucky she’s cute.