Muddy Paw Prints

If you walked out on your front porch and saw muddy paw prints on the white fabric cushion of your wicker chair, what would you think?  What would you do?

Well . . . we were at our "doggie park" this morning (as usual) which is not a real doggie park.  It is a city park with ballfields, fences on 2 sides, but no fences on the 2 ends.  I have to watch Guinness closely at each end of the field, or he is liable to run away.  ugh!  NOT a Labrador thing to do and he is pure bred.  (He doesn't fetch either.)  Before we continue, I have to compliment him on exhibiting typical Labrador behavior today.  A couple of weeks ago, he ran free while my cousins and I climbed a thickly wooded hill where we used to play as kids.  (See http://dogsofourlives.blogspot.ca/2012/05/roaming-woods.html) I was not feeling "safe" about Guinness being loose, as my experience with Guinny is that he runs away from me.  But he did the Labrador thing today:  he ran until I was out of sight, then he would reappear -- repeatedly.  I was very happy!

I had driven to doggie park today, leaving a sweater in the car.  At the opposite end of the park from my car, I realized it was too cold to not have the sweater.  So I took off for the car, wondering what Guinness would do.  Would he follow me -- especially since I was going to the car which might mean we were leaving?  He followed me!!!!  Yay!!!!

Now back to his anti-lab behavior.  Beside the escape route on the south end of the field is house where his friend Molly, a labra-doodle, lives.  If I am not diligent, he runs to her house.  Usually I can catch him talking to Molly through the fence to their backyard.  If she isn't there, I can catch him in their front bushes, though recently, he has run down the street.  We were on the north side of the field.  Bandit appeared at the south side, and Guinness ran to see his friend.  As I approached, he took off at top speed for Molly's.  I found him ON the wicker chair with the white cushion, now decorated with muddy paw prints, talking to Molly on the other side of the window.  We went back to play with Bandit.  They were running in circles when Guinness cut a tangent and ran to Molly's again.  This time Molly was barking, inviting him to come in.  More muddy paw prints.