Harlow has the best nose in the whole world. It’s so perfectly black and uniform and adorable. I thought it would be fun to make a print of it, so I ordered an ink-free printing kit. I learned three things;
1. Harlow is the most patient dog on the planet. I must have made twenty-seven attempts with no luck.
2. Puppy noses are shockingly squishy and slippery making this a much trickier task than I expected. and
3. Getting a perfect nose print is basically is a mission impossible.
Harlow and my parents’ dog Winnie get along OK, but only when carefully supervised while around humans that make them jealous of each other. It’s been a while since I’ve visited my parents with Harlow, because I don’t want to allow for any opportunity in which a squabble could cause damage to that fragile “marble” she has on her side. I don’t need any emergencies right now, thank you very much.
She has not seen my parents in quite a while, so I invited them over for dinner and Harlow snuggles. Sunday night, they came by and we ordered Indian take out and made our way to my backyard where the patio was set up. It was very nice, the first meal of the season out there, surrounded by my potted flowers trying to survive.
Harlow wandered as she does while we ate, at one point exploring behind my lilac bush. The way she stood there was odd. I don’t know why it seemed strange to me but it did. Something in her posture. Then she started to tremble and squat and I said “Oh, she’s pooping” No big deal. We chuckled.
But, soon it seemed to me that she was caught on something. I got up to get a closer look, and at that point she started rustling around and I heard an occasional faint squeak. I worried it was a bunny but know from experience they are louder and more upsetting-sounding when in distress. What was going on?! Then as she came out from around the back of the lilac bush, I realized what was happening.
She caught a squirrel!
I screamed at her to drop it while her instincts kicked in. As my parents watched, seated at a table with their Indian food under my lovely patio lights, Harlow thrashed with the poor thing in her mouth.
I managed to get her to drop it, and I brought her back into the house. I cleaned her face off and went back outside, shutting and securing the dog door behind me. We knew the poor squirrel’s back was likely broken and it was still breathing, but we knew he was suffering. So I’ll just say we helped it sleep rather than let it suffer. Not fun.
A short time later we were inside having dessert and playing some Rummikub and talking about what just happened. I marveled because Harlow has NEVER caught a squirrel before. I just couldn’t figure out how she’d managed to this time. Mom was petting her when she said “She has a bald spot on her back!”
I brushed it off because Harlow’s fur is so thin that she often does look like she has bald patches, but then I saw it. A huge area of nothing but skin where there used to be fur! It wasn’t red or irritated. It didn’t look like it had been yanked out. It just looks like that section of fur just…moved out.
The last time she and Winnie had a loud but injury-free scuffle, I noticed tufts of fur just releasing from Harlow’s body. I thought it could have been yanked out, but for some reason I thought it was more likely that the stress and adrenaline rush caused her to sort of…molt. I don’t know that this is a thing at all, but this most recent incident has me convinced that’s what’s happening.
So, she has a bald patch to go with her marble now, and thankfully, she is unbothered by both.
She’s certainly never boring, my girl.
BEAN'S BABBLETORIUM 