Attack Toby

I have little to add today.  However, I believe you need to watch the video below.  This is Toby and me on the beach.  Toby, as a full-throttle-jack-russell-terror, sees play as the 4th  5th most important thing in his life.  Number one being food.  Two is water.  Three is sleep and four is his Mommy(Cora), with whom he cuddles readily, and even likes to mix both three AND four together. This is when you find him sleeping on her lap.  He is NOT spoiled, we just hate to see a puppy in need.

Which brings me to today's post.  As a puppy, he would play almost incessantly, then fall down in a pile of sleepy puppy.  He would go into what we called TURBO about five to seven times a day.  Turbo, if you are not familiar with Jack Russells, is when all the energy that has built up inside him in the time since his last turbo is released in a sudden burst of running, jumping, barking or fun-growling, and general abandon.  This often sees Toby run from one end of the house to another.  Rather than simply turn around as other dogs will do, Toby will make the next step UP to keep his kinetic energy up.  He walks on the wall...or the door...or whatever vertical object offers itself for the task.  So, instead of slowing down for a corner, Toby continues his high speed run and simply corners on the wall, a lot like the NASCAR tracks that have high banked ends.  

He used to make fifteen to 25 circuits, however, nowadays he is down to about seven.  

I took Cora's car in for a replacement part today.  As I was sitting there, trying to read my book, a lady came in with two dogs, which appeared to be over-weight basset hounds.  When she got to where the waiting area was, though, I realized that these were too short to be basset hounds, as they have longer bodies.  Then one of them began to wail, and I realized it was a REALLY FAT pair of beagles!  The lady let them move freely.  They were asthmatic and slow moving.  

She said they were born in July 2002.  I thought about that, looking at these gray-muzzled, slow-moving, lethargic, fat dogs, and realized that Toby was born on March 11, 2002...several months before these behemoths!  And MY dog is in the apparent prime of his life!  He is handsome and, although he might be better if he lost a pound or two, at least he isn't a fifty pound Beagle!

  

He's 23 pounds of pure fun!

Full speed or sleep...

I love my puppy dog.  And, really, who can call their 8 year old dog a puppy after 8 years?  No one, except Jack Russell owners...

oh, and you might be wondering what number 6 is on the Jack Russell list of things to do...well, that is easy:  Pee.  They like to pee on things.