Well, I guess she’s not an angel after all…. No, not the lighted angel, Kali. The green painters tape clinging to her belly hair was all the evidence I needed.

Backing up for context…..

The day after Kali arrived in May she was checking out the house and exploring her new surroundings. Sniffing around the couch in the family room she put one paw up on the seat cushion and slithered up onto it like a snake. I gently pulled her down and said, “No, stay down Kali”, and she moved along her way sniffing and exploring. That was the end of that. Or so I thought.

A few days before Kali came home we bought a crate for her with a soft bed in it. We bought it so that she would have her special place and for all the obvious reasons families provide crates for their dogs. She would go in it if asked to but never on her own. She didn’t need it or want it and she was always very respectful of the house. So after a few weeks we took it down and put it in storage. During the hot summer Kali enjoyed laying on the cool tiles in our kitchen and family room. Whether we’re home or not Kali has the run of the house and we’ve never had any reason to not trust her. Or so I thought.

Then over the weekend my bubble was burst. The jig is up. Kali was implicated in a household misdemeanor!…

Thanksgiving night we set up our Christmas tree in the living room. We have to move around furniture to accommodate placing the tree where we like it. As with most other events and changes around the house Kali was lying in the thick of the activity, unfazed, and more than willing to allow us step over her or around her. Why get up or move, right? The next day as I was coming down the stairs I see Kali slowly getting off the couch. This is a different couch than the one she slithered onto in May. That was a cold leather couch in the family room. This couch, in the living room, is a warm fabric couch and much softer than the leather one. It was a rather cute scene but I thought I better not let this become a habit. So I took her to the couch and gestured that it was not ok to be on it. This in itself is funny because several seconds had passed and Kali had no idea what I was talking about.

The next evening Holly and were going out. Kali and Smokey would have the house to themselves for a few hours. I wondered out loud to Holly if Kali would get up on the couch as she had the day before. It’s not that we really care. It’s just the principle of setting boundaries for Kali and making sure she continues to respect the house. On the other hand, and in Kali’s defense, Smokey also has the run of the house including couches and chairs and beds and anything else warm and comfy he can jump onto. When Smokey does it it’s cute and expected. When Kali does it it’s not OK. So, like I used to tell my kids when they would compare themselves to each other for some reason and say, “that’s not fair – so-and-so get’s to do it”. I would reply, “If you want to compare let’s do a thorough review and see what I should not let you do because your brother or sister doesn’t get to and it wouldn’t be fair to them”. I may need to have this conversation with Kali in the near future.

Holly, replying to my musing about Kali getting on the couch while we would be gone, says, “hey – do the tape thing that your friend Marty told you about and we’ll find out”. The “tape thing” is placing painters tape – sticky side up – on the couch so that if the dog was to get on the aforementioned couch the tape would become attached to the aforementioned dog (that’d be you Kali!). I strategically place the tape on the couch – sticky side up – and we walk out reminding Kali and Smokey to be good while we’re gone. They stare blankly back as is the norm when we leave together wondering why they can’t go too.

A few hours later when we get home Kali greets us at the door leading into the kitchen from the garage as she always does. I immediately go the couch to check the status of the tape. It’s gone. Hmm… Meanwhile Holly is laughing while Kali stands there with painters tape securely attached to the hair on her belly wagging her tail welcoming us home. Holly and I laugh because we’re not surprised and because Kali looks silly and so very guilty. Kali, continuing to wag her tail now with an increased velocity, implies that the evidence is circumstantial. She continues to welcome us home as I rip the tape away from her long hair. This of course doesn’t faze her in the least bit. Her world is good again and so is ours. The pack is reunited.

We’re all together again, at home with two couches and plenty of painters tape.