There is a "Family Group", renting the house across the street from us. The Grandparents live in a Fifth Wheel Trailer, with a 2000 dollar grill and patio set-up, with a large propane tank for fuel..there's also a pop-up camper adjacent to the Shed, that's painted a bright blue, to match the main house. Judging by the number of vehicles parked in front of and in the driveways, there are quite a few roommates also living there. There's lots of yelling, fighting and occasionally loud music...there's also at least three kids, from middle school aged down to kindergarten. In the summer the kids are usually out running around the neighborhood, staying out late and making all kinds of racket. They're sort of feral children it seems, not much supervision and the supervision they do get seems to be of the yelling and smacking variety. It's kind of sad really. It aggravates me, because suppose I wanted to sell my house...who's going to want to buy a house across the street from a KOA campground? But even moreso, what kinda way is that for kids to grow up?
Anyway, Bailee is sort of a feral child, herself. In her first home, she didn't get a lot of attention and spent most of her days roaming a farm, with several acres of trouble to get in to. When she was allowed in her house, she spent most of her time in a crate, screaming at the top of her lungs to get out...this trait is what initially attracted me to her in the first place, as that's what she did in her Foster Home. A Bulldog's scream for attention is just about the most amazing thing you've ever heard...it's sort of a cross between the trumpeting of an elephant, the bugeling of an elk and the scream of a harpy...each bulldog has a distinct take on this sound and when you hear it, it's impossible to ignore. I suppose it's like the Siren's Songs that lured unsuspecting (and hardup) sailors to their deaths, as they jumped overboard...of course, I'm neither a sailor (though I sure can cuss like one), nor am I hardup, but Bai's siren song is what led me to her...and there's only a handful of times it's led to my near demise...but that's a story for a different time.
I walk the dogs nightly, sometimes I'll take two together and walk one seperately or I'll walk all three seperately, so they get the maximum amount of my time on their walk. This takes a lot of time out of my night, but is great for them and for me, as I can always use more exercise...especially since I can always eat more ice cream...Anyway, it's while I was walking Phoebe and Bailee (The Tall and SHort of it) together this summer, that I struck up an acquaintance with the Feral Children. I didn't really want to, but Phoebe and Bailee are attention whores and they love KIDS a LOT. So when these kids wanted to pet them, what could I say? Of course, they were afraid of Phoebe, with her being so big and all, but Bailee, she's not intimidating at all, nor is she shy about asking for attention. So I chatted with the kids for a bit, they had a lot of questions about the dogs and the girls really liked the extra attention...I figured it wouldn't kill me to provide these kids with a positive adult interaction either...I mean, seriously.
So last night, I had Bai out for her solo walk, and the two boys came running over and wanted to pet Bailee and asked if I would let them runn with her down the street. I was a bit not sure about the request...Bailee may only weight 45 pounds or so...but she's all muscle, leverage and she pulls like a locomotive....plus, if they let go of the leash, Bailee would be gone like there was no tomorrow...she LOVES TO RUN and she's freaking fast. But these kids, really, really wanted to, and I knew Bailee would love it, so I set up some rules. 1. Triple Wrap the Leash around your hand. 2. Do not let go 3. Don't trip! 4. No further than the corner and back.
Well, the kids did great and Bailee had a HUGE time...that little pistol can fly...she was faster than them with no sweat. Her eyes were lit up and she had what looked like a gigantic grin on her face, even though she was panting slightly. The boys too, had flushed cheeks and bright eyes, proud of themselves for doing a good job and for flying with the little powerhouse.
As we said our goodbyes, the boys said "We want a dog just like Bailee" and I hope that some day, they do.
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