Dog Dancing---is She Crazy?

A bunch of us dogaroons up here at the Rainbow Bridge were lounging under the tennis ball trees discussing our humans and their habit of making New Years Resolutions. So I decided to peek down at my family and see what silly things Mom put on her list this year. Mom's a list kind of person so I knew she'd have one. Years ago she even made one of those "100 Things to do Before I Die" lists and recently she found it again. She'd actually done about half the things on her list and decided she should make a new list. The first thing she put down was: "Shorten this list to 25 things to do before I die. I'm old!"

I digress. For her New Year's Resolutions Mom had put down the customary weight and exercise related things that seem to be required for humans to list. She had a few improve-your-personality type things as well, pretty standard stuff for Mom. Then she had one crazy, totally unobtainable thing listed. Even crazier than the time she vowed to learn how to belly dance. In 2009 she wants to---get this---learn how to do dog dancing with my baby brother, Levi!

Mom thinks it will kill a flock of birds with one stone. 1) It will give her some exercise; 2) it will give Levi some exercise; 3) it will create a stronger bond between Mom and Levi; and 4) it will entertain Dad with their practice sessions. What Mom left out of the equation is that fact that she's old and she can hardly walk. Sure, she'd got one new knee but the other one won't even bend. It's shot and needs replacing, too. She can't walk fast or for long without pain, let alone run and if she tries to dance, she'll look like a character in a low budget Frankenstein movie. I love her but a hunchbacked old woman dragging a leg behind her doesn't exactly inspire my confidence in her ability to pull off dog dancing with Levi.

Levi, the little trouper, is doing his part. Already he's learned how to bow, shake right and left, do circles on command and is learning to go through Mom's legs. He can also do the normal obedience things like sit, down, stand and heel. And get this. When I looked down on them today Mom was sitting in her rolling computer chair trying to get Levi to back up and come forward as she rolled to and from him. I think she's mixing wheelchair dancing up with dog dancing. I know she's watched those wheelchair dancing competitions but I'm not sure she has a clue what dog dancing is all about.

I tried to talk to my older brother, Jason, up here the Bridge about Mom's craziest. He's a full-fledged angel-dog and a newbie trainer on top of that. But he says I can't interfere. I tried to tell him she's going to fall and break her neck but Jason is firm about the rules. No ifs, ands or buts about it I can't erase 'dog dancing' off Mom's New Year's Resolution list and her memory and replace it with 'knit everyone on the block a sweater.' It's a pain in the butt sometimes to have all this angel-power not be able to use it in so-called wasteful ways. How is it wasteful to make my mom act her age? On the good side, most of her New Year's Resolutions don't make it to April. ©

Cooper

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Carolyn and Rookie, Dog Dancing Team

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