Weekend Hound Report: A Whole New Daphne

Since we lost Zephyr, Daphne has been going through changes, but the most pronounced have been in the month since Phoebe came along and Daphne realized that it was up to her to seize the mantle of canine leadership.

For the past three years, Daphne has been generally afraid to go anywhere in the house apart from the living room, our bedroom, and the study, which she only discovered back in June. Shortly after Phoebe came, Daphne started to develop an interest in the kitchen and the mysterious goings-on in there. At first we thought it was cute (look, she’s being brave), but then last week as my wife was making some peanut butter sandwiches, Daphne rose up on her hind legs, planted her front paws on the kitchen island, and took a piece of bread out of her hand. This was so unexpected that after my wife regained the power of speech, she could only laugh.

I prefer a dog that doesn’t steal food off the counter, at least not while we’re watching, but at the same time, I was kind of proud of big Daph because it’s so seldom that she asserts herself. I don’t know what kind of abuse or neglect she suffered at the hands of the monsters who owned her (she was a black-market greyhound, which means she was owned by people who were engaged either in a) illegal racing, b) illegal rabbit hunting, or c) illegal dog-fighting) before she was saved by a greyhound rescue group, but after three years, we’re thrilled to see her coming out of her shell and becoming more of a dog.

Of course that means now she may have to learn some manners.

In other hound news, my parents’ dog Nigel (who isn’t a greyhound, but we don’t hold that against him) wanted to ensure that no ants would be attracted by stray crumbs:

[saveagrey]

James Brush

James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.

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