This blog is a tribute to Belle, and all the dogs who have come before and after. They are my friends, my companions, my teachers and my students. They bring me both joy and heartache, laughter and tears. There is nothing as sweet as the smell of puppy breathe, and nothing as sad as the final goodbye.


Saturday, July 15, 2017

How to properly fit a harness

While I'm not a big fan of harnesses except for the little one's with weak tracheas, this guide may help those of you who are using them how to properly fit a harness on your dog. I cringe when I see a dog wering a poorly fitted harness, knowing how common it is for a determined dog to back out of it and run away, sometimes right into the path of an oncoming car. So as a public service I am posting this guide.

Saturday, June 17, 2017


In My Good Death:

I will find myself in high summer grass.
The humming shock of the golden light.
And I will hear them before I see them
and know right away who is bounding across the field to meet me.
All my good dogs will come then, their wet noses bumping against my palms,
their hot panting, their rough, faithful tongues.
Their eyes young and shiny again.
The dense scruff of their fur,
The unspeakable softness of their bellies,
their velvet ears against my cheeks.
I will bend to them, my face covered with their kisses,
My hands full of them.
In the grass I will let them knock me down."
 
                                                                   Dalia Shevin