What a transformation. In a matter of about an hour he went from “Tough Guy” to “Lamb Pie”.

Kali’s little bro’, Smokey got a LONG OVERDUE grooming this week.  Smokey had not had a grooming for quite some time and he needs one at least every 8 to 12 weeks.  Otherwise he quickly turns into one of those fuzzy slippers that my sister used to wear back in the sixties.  It’s an amazing transformation and this time it was even more striking.  Because we waited so long he had a lot of matting in his fur.   So this grooming turned out to be a more of a doggie buzz-cut.

SMOKEY: PRE-TRANSFORMATION

SMOKEY: POST-TRANSFORMATION

It could be that I’m projecting my perceptions but Smokey seems a lot calmer and mild-mannered when he looks like a little lamb. Less barking and overall less small-dog syndrome.  Although the bleating does become rather annoying (sorry!)…

Another interesting dynamic is how Kali has related to Smokey after his grooming.  Smokey is usually the one who initiates play taunting Kali to chase him using tactics like nipping at her tail and running in circles under her nose.  But this time when Smokey came home from the grooming Kali seemed intrigued.  They always greet each other when one of them comes home but this time seemed different.  Kali approached Smokey with lots of sniffing and pushed her head against his little 11 pound body.  Then, like a unbridled pony her front legs went up in the air, her tail was wagging furiously, and with a big smile on her face she seemed to say, “Hey you’re cute and you smell really good; wanna play chase?”  And of course Smokey complied running in between furniture and under tables to get away only to re-emerge and launch his signature counter attack. It’s a good thing Kali is not a border collie or Smokey would be in for a long Spring.

And talk about transformation and Spring, we went from torrential downpours in the Bay Area causing flooding in many areas to sunny and warm Spring-like weather.  We’ll have temps in the low to mid-seventies throughout the weekend and into next week.  If only I could teach Kali how to caddy could multitask with a long walk while I also play golf.

There’s a pond along our walking trail with a lots of ducks, geese, and a variety of water fowl.  We’ve even seen a couple of blue heron’s.  Kali loves watching the birds and becomes especially animated when they land in the water as a flock or take back to the skies after we’ve come too close or Kali has let out a hearty woof.  Kali is a great walker and rarely tugs at the leash staying close to my side.  But as we get close to the duck pond she begins pulling and fully extends the slack in the leash while looking back at me as if to say, “Aren’t you coming?  There are birds over there in the water.  I’m a retriever; I’ve got a job to do”.

It had been a long time since Kali and I had walked in warm weather.  Me in shorts and Kali in, well she still had two coats on but she didn’t seem to mind.  So on this Winter afternoon that felt a lot more like Spring we took an extra long route, visited the duck pond (did I have a choice?),  passed by the dog park without drama, and stopped to “smell the (figurative) roses”.  With no reason to rush home we took in the sights and smells and were very mindful our blessings on this glorious afternoon.