Bella Gets Bored

One of my humans, Frank, is such a creature of habit. When I take him for a walk, he always wants to take the same route. He has a "short walk," "medium walk," and "long walk." These are all pretty much in the same neighborhood and it does get kind of boring.

Recently, I have convinced him to explore a little bit and we have started going across the main road to a new area that is full of all kinds of interesting smells and buildings. One time, a big dog started barking at us and the owner came out, saying, "Bella, be quiet!" He was talking to his dog, not me! Bella is a pretty popular name for canines, I have found. Frank's cousin has a dog named Bella and they call her "Bella One" and me "Bella Two," which I find somewhat unfair, but she was part of the family first, so I guess it's okay. There is even a dog supposedly named "Bella" on the dog food Frank buys me!

Anyway, the other day, I decided to do something really new. Frank thought we were going on the "medium walk," but at the key moment, I deviated and headed into the downtown area. Wow, was he surprised! He kept saying, "Bella, what are you doing? Where are you going?" I just pushed right ahead and paid him no mind.

I was somewhat inspired because sometimes I hear this song called "Downtown." Frank and Donna don't know that I can understand some of their language, but I can! This song says, "Everything's great when you're Downtown," and I wanted to check it out for myself. So off we went.

I guess it was great, but there was no grass or trees there, just big buildings and a lot more humans (and cars). I can't say it met the promise of the song, but it was different, and got Frank out of his comfort zone. So I wasn't bored for a few days!

Hmmm, where shall I take him next?

Bella Goes Downtown!

(c) Copyright, Frank and Donna White, 2018, All Rights Reserved

We Saw One!

Do you remember how I told you in an earlier blog that I would give my life for my human, Frank, if we ever encountered a hostile Noble Ancestor?

Well, I almost had to make good on that promise last night. Frank and I were in the front yard as I finished my business for the day when I suddenly saw it:  a large coy wolf with dark fur running up our street. Without thinking, I immediately started barking and I'm pretty sure it started to run faster!

 Of course, if I had not been startled, I would've barked a greeting instead of a warning. I would've loved to have talked with the noble Ancestor about life in the wild!

 I definitely would've had to defend Frank if the coy wolf had turned his/her attention on us. Frank wasn't showing much situational awareness and in fact started pulling on my leash and telling me to be quiet so that I would not wake up the neighbors. Then, he saw it and said something like, "Oh my Gosh, oh my Gosh!" At that point, the Noble Ancestor turned the corner and was gone, just like that.

Frank was very excited and we went inside to tell Donna about it. Frank told her what happened and I tried to explain it as well but she thought I was begging for food and told me to be quiet. Donna suggested that Frank call the police. We didn't think they would do much, but there is a database of sightings for the town, so Frank called.

Here is how the call went:

Frank:  Hi, I want to report that I saw a coyote running up my street. I know you track them.
Cop: Where do you live?
Frank: (He tells him)
Cop: Awesome! Thanks for calling.

End of call.

 This morning, when Frank  came into the living room, he called me Brave Bella and said I was his hero. That felt really good, I can tell you!

Ready for Action!


(c) Frank & Donna White, 2018, All Rights Reserved

Note: We write these blogs up on Bella's behalf primarily for the entertainment of our grandchildren, but adults seem to enjoy her adventures as well!

It's My Birthday!

So today is my birthday and I am nine years old, believe it or not! Frank told Donna that means I'm 63 in human years, which seems kind of old, doesn't it?

Donna and Frank bought me a lot of treats I am not supposed to have because I am, well, a bit overweight.

They also sang Happy Birthday to me and gave me a cupcake with a candle in it. The candle looked pretty tasty but they said, "No, no, eat the cupcake." I have a sweet tooth, but this one didn't do it for me.

As you know if you've been reading this blog and looking at the pictures, my coat is black and white, sort of like a panda. I have these two big patches of black on my sides and my back, but they seem to be getting a lot of white streaks in them. If this keeps up, my fur might look like Frank's hair! Scary thought!

I know I'm slowing down a little bit, but I feel young at heart. I can't believe I'm a day over five (that would be 35 in human years, right?)

Anyway, I feel happy today. I can count my blessings, like: I'm not in a shelter, I have a comfortable house to live in, a couple of square meals a day, and no coyotes...so far!


Bella (full disclosure: this photo was taken a year ago, but I refused to pose with a funny hat today.)

Watch Out for the Coyotes!

When we go on our walks, Frank often stops to talk with a neighbor who lives on one of the streets along our route. He has a little dog who jumps around and tries to get my attention, but this little guy is young and kind of hyper, so we don't have much in common.

Anyway, this neighbor tells Frank that he has seen coyotes on the street and that there is a big one that “looks like a wolf." 

Frank talks to his funny-looking silver box and finds out that most of the coyotes on the East Coast are really “coywolves,” part coyote, part wolf, and a little bit of dog! The box also told him that our town has a map showing where the coyotes have been spotted.

Frank says he worries “about what Bella would do” if I saw a coyote. “She’s tough and she wouldn’t back down; she would fight.” It makes me feel good that Frank knows I would defend him to the death, because I truly would!

The thing is, if I saw any kind of wolf, I would not want to fight him. Wolves are our Noble Ancestors! They don’t depend on humans to feed them or pick up their you-know-what or pull them around on a leash! They run wild and free and make their own rules and I would never want to fight a coywolf, even if she is only part wolf. I would bow down and show my respect! Well, unless it attacked my human...

Sorry—I get a kind of passionate about canine history!

Anyway, we try not to walk on that street at night anymore. Frank says his karate teacher told him the best way to use your martial arts skills is to avoid using them. I agree, especially when it comes to coywolves!

Still, I would love to see one of those Noble Ancestors—from a distance, of course!

Bella (on patrol)

That Funny-Looking Box

Both of my humans have these funny-looking boxes that they tap on with their paws all day long. Donna does it a lot, but Frank does it constantly. When he gets up in the morning, it is the first thing he does after making his coffee. Tap, tap, tap. I really don't know what he gets out of it. The box doesn't produce any food, and most of the time, there aren't any moving pictures on it, which humans seem to enjoy.

Sometimes, Frank sits in his chair to do this, and if I try to get his attention by putting my paws on the chair, he gets annoyed. He seems to think he has to protect the precious silver box from me, so he says, "Get down, Bella. I mean it!" No fun.

I've come to realize that when he first starts the tapping in the morning, the best thing for me to do is just go back to sleep. If I whine enough, he'll feed me, and if I whine next to the door, he'll take me out, but he won't be in a good mood about it. After he has had his coffee and done whatever he does with his silver box, he is much more interested in scratching behind my ears, or just telling me what a good dog I am. That makes me feel very special, I can tell you.

Donna doesn't do as much tapping on her silver box. She has a little box called a phone and she uses that more than the big thing. She is a lot more tolerant of interruptions than Frank is and she loves it when I jump up into her lap for a hug, but she seems to think there is something special about that box as well.

If I figure it out, I'll let you know what the funny-looking box is all about.

Bella

Adopting Bella

Donna and I did not have a dog during the first 20-plus years of our marriage. There were a lot of reasons why this was so, partly because Donna did not see herself as a "dog person."

On the other hand, I had had a dog as a friend and companion from the time I was four or five until I was 17. Then, with years of schooling and travel, I was not able to have one, but I did have a cat named Grasshopper (who thought he was a dog) for some 20 years. Grasshopper was deaf and blind, but he just kept going and wouldn't give up. When we finally put him to sleep, he fought it and I felt terrible. I swore I would not have any more animals because that just hurt too much.

However, I started reading about the healing skills of dogs and thought Donna and I could both benefit from having one in our lives because we both have health issues.

I talked with Donna about getting a dog for healing purposes quite often and she finally agreed that "you can have a dog, but it will be your dog."

I agreed and we contacted, then visited, a nearby shelter.

We didn't connect with any of the dogs we met there, but left information about the kind of animal companion we were seeking.

While we waited, I asked Donna what name she might pick if we were able to have a dog. She said, "Bella." I said, "Well, he or she might already have a name, so we have to just wait and see."

Not long after that, the rescue people let us know they had a dog that seemed just right for us. Her name? Bella! Well, that sealed the deal and we agreed to adopt her. (My first cousin's dog is named Bella as well, so we now have Bella 1 and Bella 2.)

The adoption took place one year ago today and we couldn't be happier. Bella is now part of our family and we love her very much. No longer my dog, she is definitely "our dog."

More from us, and from Bella, later.

Frank

Bella on June 23, 2017

(c) Copyright, Frank and Donna White, 2018, All Rights Reserved