If A Dog Were A Jock

My in-laws have a pekinese-poodle mix that, if you assigned people-type personalities to dogs, he'd be a jock. Tough as a bear and a terrible tease. Loves to harrass the German Shepherd mix next door with a furious fusillade of barks, while the other dog stares dully at Peanut like, "What's your problem?"

Then when he's finished he plows through our patio screen door as nonchalantly as I might walk through curtains. "No need to open the door. I just let myself in," I can imagine him saying.

Peanut shines on the backyard soccer field. We play with an inflatable kid's ball which he can push with his nose while running full gallop. He might get lucky and push the ball between the plastic pylons of our makeshift goal. But the ball's just as likely to end up buried in the hosta plants by the fence.

When you're dribbling the ball upfield, best keep one eye on the ball. Because if Peanut has his eye on the ball too, as in the picture above, it only takes one sideward glance by the human, and dog and ball go flying together across the back yard.

Unfortunately, Peanut has been suffering from a degenerative joint disease which probably will only get worse. He has trouble walking, sometimes even trouble sitting. And he takes regular pain medication. Yet, when we go out for some backyard soccer, he wouldn't miss it. And when he plays, it's just like the old Peanut, full of speed, full of adrenaline.

The sign of a true athlete is one who can play through the pain. And if a dog could be a true athlete, that would be Peanut.