Willow Tales: Runnin' Free
The Adventures of a Carolina Dog
I’m not gonna lie, It was a little scary at first, but when G’Mama unhooked the leash, it was the most exhilarating feeling I’ve ever had. For the first time, after eight months of being in a fenced yard or walking with a harness and leash, Pops allowed me to run free.
We were spending the week at Pops and G’Mama’s favorite place called Edisto Island. It was all dirt roads, woods, marsh, and mud.
They were a little scared too, not knowing if my hunting instincts would kick in and I would just run off and never come back. You know, being a Carolina Dog and all.
That first time, I did give them a scare, but I was actually playing a joke on them.
We had walked down the road to the Potato Dock landing on the creek. On our way back, G’Mama took the leash off and I ran way out in front of them as fast as I could. Then I quickly darted off into the woods.
Little did they know, my goal was to run back to the house before they could find me and wait to surprise them.
When I didn’t come back, I could hear them calling, “Willoooooow, Widdy (OK, that’s a nickname, don’t laugh) Willoooow. Time to go home.”
It tugged on my heart a little, but I knew what was coming.
After a while, they decided to split up. G’Mama stayed down the road with Elli, looking and calling me, while Pops walked back to the house with Beau and Polly.
But, I was already home. I could hardly contain myself while I was waiting to see Pop’s face when he saw me.
I waited ‘til he almost got to the porch before I darted out to greet him, just full of myself for being able to trick them. When he saw me, he got a big grin on his face and I knew he was proud of me for going home all by myself and not running off.
Oh boy, biscuit time.
I learned some important things that day, young pups, so listen up ...
First of all, I learned how much they truly love me. I could see the worry in their eyes and genuine relief when Pops saw me. It’s the best feeling in the world when you know that you are unconditionally loved.
I say unconditionally, because I’ve done some pretty bad things in my short life. Like ripping up chair and sofa cushions, chewing up perfectly good socks and pillows, creating a hole in the carpet, shredding important papers into tiny little pieces, making sticks into big piles of mulch in the house, and pulling anything I can reach off the kitchen counters.
I mean, I am still a puppy. And that’s what puppies do, right?
“WILLOOOW,”
Pops gets mad and scolds me. But then he just melts like putty in my paws when I look at him with my big brown eyes, lean up against him, and lick his face. He’s like a school boy experiencing his first crush. And, of course, I don’t do anything to discourage that.
I also learned how much my pack means to me. Even Beau, who is a grumpy old curmudgeon. A close pack is everything - security, stability, contentment, love. I love my pack with all my puppy heart.
You see, I was born in the wild, so only our Creator knows where I would be without them. I might not have even survived if I hadn’t been rescued.
Even though I kinda’ knew those things in the back of my mind, being able to run free helped me see how much I appreciate them.
And then, probably the most important thing I learned was that freedom is not necessarily without some restraints. Running footloose and fancy free can get you into a lot of trouble if you don’t know how to handle it.
That’s why learning to walk with the pack with a harness and leash and learning to obey a few basic commands are essential to a happy home. I know what the limits are. But I still push it sometimes.
That’s why Pops calls me “Wild and Willowful”.
Elli likes to tell me stories that just fuel my imagination.
“Osage was another member of our pack”, she would start. '“But she died a few months before you came to live with us. I think that’s why Pops and G’Mama got you because you remind them so much of Osage.
We all loved her so much. You look a lot like her, but her coat coloring was different. Anyway, when she and I first came to live with Pops and G’Mama, we were much younger.
“We lived in the middle of the woods that even had a wonderful swamp just across the mill pond creek. It was like Paradise.
There were two mill ponds close by and all kinds of creatures around - Alligators, snakes, turkeys, turtles, deer, fox, coyotes, beavers, and lots of pretty birds. Once I even saw an otter. And the Barred Owls were everywhere, calling out to each other. It sounded like they were saying, ‘Who, Who, Who Cooks for yoooouu?’ They were funny.
“It was a wonderful place to live, full of adventure. But, Osage and I always managed to take things a little too far. Pops trusted us to stick around so they never put us on leashes and we didn’t have a fenced yard.
“We would roam the woods for hours. Eventually we discovered that we could cross the road and swim in the pond over there.
“One lady who lived over that way used to keep her cat food on her back porch. Yep, I would eat it, then lie down by the door waiting for more.
She just melted when she saw my black face and big brown eyes. Said I looked like her Lab that passed a couple of years before. She even let me curl up under her desk, like her pup did.
“So, needless to say, she and I became fast friends. From that time on, any time I didn’t come home, Pops and G’Mama knew exactly where to look. Osage, however, was much like you. She did not cotton to strangers.
“When someone would stop on the road to see who we belonged to, I never hesitated to jump right into their cars. Except when I was stinky from rolling in some dead animal parts or something. Then, they wouldn’t let me in. They would just call and wait for someone to come get me. But, Osage would always just run home.”
“Wow, Elli”, I said. “That sounds like Pup Paradise.”
“Well it was. But when we moved to where we live now, things changed. It’s still great here but it’s much more open. There‘s another whole set of creatures that live around here. Cows, sheep, goats, horses, and donkeys. There’s more coyotes here as well. The donkey’s do a pretty good job of keeping them away, but we need to be vigilant.
“The good part was that there seemed to be a lot more dead animals around to roll on. I would come home so proud of how I smelled. G’Mama didn’t think so, though. I usually had a bath every other day.
“The bad part was that a lot of those dead animals were skunks. Not even I liked those and I’m one that never met a dead animal I didn’t love.
“Well, one night in the middle of the winter, we were able to get out of the fence and go roaming. That’s when we encountered a live skunk. Osage was a hunter and began chasing it. Until the skunk stopped and sprayed her full in the face. She took off for home.
“When we got there, she smell so bad that it made our eyes burn. Pops opened the door when he heard us and before he could react, she had run into the house and stunk it up to high heaven. Mind you, it was very cold outside. But, Pops opened all the windows and turned every fan in the house on to try and get that smell out.
“Then G’Mama started scrubbing Osage in the tub with all sorts of homemade remedies. A faint skunk smell lingered in the house for weeks. And Osage’s coat smelled for months after that. That was a great adventure for sure. Well, I thought so, anyway.”
“I’m sure Pops and G’Mama will never forget that time”, I said.
“They still bring it up sometimes, just to embarrass me, I think”, said Elli.
Anyway, the point I am trying to make with telling Elli’s stories is that running free is great. It’s a lot of fun. But, it is so easy to get into trouble. Sometimes that trouble is hard or impossible to get out of. So, beware, ny young friends. Even though pack life with humans can seem restrictive , be thankful for their love and concern for your well-being.
I am just so glad I have a pack that loves me and a safe and happy home.
Well, I’m sure I’ll try it again soon. Then I’ll have more Willow Tales to tell.
In the meantime …
Face Licks to all,
Willow
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