Samantha Spotted-Tongue Berg made her transition from Pound Puppy
to Princess in our household in one night. When we brought home the 61/2-week-old
pup with the skeptical view of the world, we thought she’d sleep in the
basement in a kennel. It took about half an hour of screaming on her
part to correct our thinking. We translated her shrieks (this was not
barking) into, “Hey! Somebody forgot the puppy in the basement! Hey!
You better get the puppy RIGHT NOW!”
So now she sleeps on our bed … and anywhere else in the house
that suits her fancy except for the new couch (on which she does not
sleep when Bob is home out of respect for his illusion that the sofa is
dog-free).
Sam has also trained us to give her treats on command, either
by bringing us her special treat ball (Isn’t that cute! Here, have a
treat.) or by simply indicating to us the cookie jar in which her
treats are kept (Isn’t she smart! Have another treat.). We once taught
her to ring a bell like those on the service desks of busy stores to
tell us that she wanted a treat. We naively thought to leave it on the
floor. She saw no reason to stop ringing the bell as long as we
responded with food. When it comes to behavior modification, Ivan
Pavlov has nothing over our Samantha.
None of this manipulation comes as any surprise to those of
you owned by a dog, cat, ferret, fish or any other winged, finned or
four-footed companion. So it should also be no surprise that when we
leave the house for a day trip or longer somewhere around Lake Superior
- which we try to do as often as possible - Samantha has perfected the
“You Wouldn’t Leave the Dog, Would You” glare that renders us
guilt-laden for up to a week if she isn’t in the car with us. Better to
take Sam on board … which brings us to this issue’s Travel Section
featuring how and where to travel around the lake region with your
pets. I know that there are others out there trying to evade that same
departing accusation. There are also lodging and attraction owners who
feel your pet’s pain and willingly accommodate those “blended” families
that include non-human members.
The nice thing about lake-region travel is that its many wild
and semi-wild spaces offer wonderful, relaxing retreats for families
with pets … and human children. We’re not talking about stuffy
grown-ups-only road trips. There are plenty of places to let the kids
run around, explore the beaches or woods or to walk the dog on a lead.
(We, of course, urge everyone to be respectful in the supervision of
both pets and children.)
The magazine’s beloved and now departed office dog,
Huckleberry Finn, often described Lake Superior as the world’s biggest
and best water dish and offered an open invitation for other dogs to
enjoy it as much as he did.
Huck’s invitation stands. Sam guarantees that it’s worth accepting.
Konnie LeMay
Editor
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