Off to the Shih Tzu Races

Last night my husband was feeling a bit under the weather. It had been a bit warm during the day, but as the sun went down, it became very nice, so I decided that it would be a good idea to take Bunny for a walk, since a tired puppy equals a family getting to sleep until their alarm clocks actually go off. Sometimes we do go for our walks alone and Bunny seems to enjoy this the most. I know, hard to believe!

Anyhow, as we began our evening constitutional, I realized that it was still a bit warmer than I'd earlier thought. Add to that the fact that they recently spread peagravel on some of our streets here in town and Bunny was beginning to slow down a bit by the time we got to our halfway point, High Street, which has some very lovely homes and landscaping. It's the street that nearly everyone in town seems to stroll down, so it can be busy with pedestrians at times. Of course, that is more than fine with Miss Bunny. I think half the reason she goes on walks with me is the supplemental petting she encounters while we are out and about in the world.

Perhaps it was because of the heat, or maybe we were just out at the wrong time, but there really weren't any other people walking along the street as we were. Bunny was prancing along, tail wagging and nose sniffing when she could. I was listening to some new music on my iPod. Suddenly, however, Bunny began to act strangely. She was in a huge hurry to get down the street. She'd run ahead, then turn around, wag and wiggle and think about darting behind me, then take off going ahead again. I looked around, trying to figure out what was in front of us that she found so fascinating. There was nothing there.

Me: Bunny, what are you doing?

Bunny: Oh, what to do, what to do!

Me: You have totally lost me here! What has gotten into you?

Bunny: It's so EXCITING! (She turns and looks behind us, wagging furiously, then looks at me quite pointedly.) How can you not see it!

Me (turning around nonchalantly): Oh! Now I get it!

Approaching us from behind were a couple with a small fuzzy shih tzu. The little dog looked like a wind up toy, dragging the man who held her leash ahead as quickly as she could. I paused, removing my earphones as they walked up to us. Bunny wagged her tail enthusiastically. I could see the debate being waged inside her pointy little head. Sniff the shih tzu or try to get petted. The shih tzu made the decision for her, forcing herself up to Bunny and sniffing her feet as Bunny breathed in a nosefull of silky fur in her less than subtle sniff over. After satisfying her olfactory curiosity and deciding that the dog was not going to play after a playbow that elicited no results, she turned her attention to the humans. She wiggled up against the woman, not so subtly demanding some scratches. The woman was happy to oblige her as we people exchanged pleasantries. After a few minutes, it was time to get back to walking.

The shih tzu was determined to win the race down the street, her little toenails digging into the pavement as she tried to outdistance Bunny, who is no giant of a greyhound by any stretch, but is darned fast, if I do say so. She never raced, but I don't believe it was due to lack of speed. More likely she was too busy finding the lead outs to get petted when the gate opened. Still, she gave the little hairball and head start and then gave me a look that clearly said "It's on!"

So, down the street we went, Bunny gaining rapidly on the tiny dog without even really having to exert herself. She just had to regain the front. She pulled me along with a great deal of enthusiasm. All pee mail sniffing and rabbit trails were forgotten as we clipped down the street. Bunny was making great gains, finally just passing them and then, the shih tzu turned and headed off down a different street as we turned into the park. Bunny's tail fell and she huffed, her head going down to the grass in a feigned sniff which was really a reconnaisance mission to see if she could make a run for it and show the little dog who was the racing queen once and for all.

I told her maybe she'd have better luck next time, since this one was a draw!