I took our two little chocolate labs Emma and Victoria to the vet in Prunedale this week for their 2nd set of shots. While I was waiting outside for our scheduled appointment, a guy in a pickup pulled up next to me and explained, “Oh my gosh, chocolate lab puppies! I had a chocolate male that was my best friend I ever had!”
Then he said something that let me know he knew his way around the proverbial block.
“Yeah, he continued, “the first two years you want to kill ‘em! But if you can survive that, they’re the best dogs ever!”
“You are absolutely spot on, my friend!” I responded back in amazement. I knew in that instant that he was a part of the Lab puppy fraternal order of commiseration. That he in fact, by his own admission, had acquired through his own personal experience, great empathy and compassion for those of us now on our own two-year purgatory of lab puppies on a seek and destroy mission.
For just the tip of the iceberg, since my last post a few weeks ago, our little babies have devoured my swimming gear including my goggles and cap, before I was able to rescue one fin and a swim sandal from their jaws.
“Why did you leave them out?,” you may ask.
That’s the twisted beauty of it. I didn’t. Somehow these two demons got up on the table in our garage where these items are stored, were able to open the drawstring clasp on the bag, and then got right to work. Unless you’ve personally experienced this phenomenon, it seems incomprehensible. But oh, it’s true. So very true.
“Get them other things to chew,” you suggest?
Trust me, my friend, we have already spent a small fortune on chew toys and treats of various shapes and sizes. People have recommended pricey antlers and rubber toys stuffed with goodies just to name a few. By the way, they love the Ol’ Roy brand of long-lasting chew bones. Long lasting for them being about 3 minutes.
All it takes is for you to turn your head for a second, and they’re off like heat-seeking missiles. On one occasion, when we weren’t looking, they snuck into my wife’s closet and absconded with one of her pricey Birkenstocks, enjoying the tasty leather until it was in tatters. No worries though. They were kind enough to leave the other one intact.
And here’s the irony of it all. Innocent observers have no idea. Whenever I pull up at a drive-thru, I get the same reaction.
“Oh my gosh!!! Chocolate lab puppies! They’re so cute!” I think the entire crew of about a dozen girls at the Salinas Chick Fil A came over to the window to ooh and awh. “I’m in love!” one remarked. “I’d take them home in an instant!” said another. The young barista at Starbucks promised me a lifetime supply of free coffee in trade.
Little do they know what lurks behind the adorable green eyes of these seemingly innocent angels. Make no mistake, my friends. They are terrorists. Little terrorists wreaking havoc!
