Some of the cutest times in my life happen with animals. I love being around them – it’s probably part of the reason I’ve been at CVAS for so long.
The animals in the shelter make me laugh sometimes on a daily basis.
I took a puppy to an offsite event last week and he had that puppy look and a fluffy face and it was hard not to giggle at him.
One moment that never fails to tickle me is when animals act like people. Pet owners know exactly what I mean.
There have been many times when I’ve taken dogs to places throughout the county and they will sit in the passenger seat of the shelter vehicle like a person. I swear I could buckle them in.
When I asked one such pup a few years ago how he was doing at one point and he just gave me this look that was so human-like it made me laugh out loud.
And the puppy from last week? As I was cleaning up the area, I had him in the air conditioning in the vehicle and at one point he propped himself up on the driver seat with his paws on the steering wheel and I hollered at him, “Are you driving back?”
I swear the look on his face was confirmation that he wanted to give it a try.
I couldn’t help but laugh.
The one area where my joy in an animal’s antics can get the best of me is discipline. In some respects, it’s probably good I don’t have any human children because I have a devil of a time keeping a straight face when dogs know they’re in trouble, and adopt that expression of chagrin but sprinkled with the visible urge to make mischief again.
A few years ago we had a little terrier mix puppy at the shelter – she was young and may have had some dachshund in her as well. I took her with me to one of the nursing homes and people just loved her, but she had the rather irritating habit of nipping at the heels of whoever was walking with her. My volunteers got nipped, I got nipped and she managed to catch just a little bit of skin underneath those front puppy teeth and man, oh day, did it hurt.
Well I had had just about enough of the nipping so I took her into one of the empty rooms, and when she went to nip me, I simply put my arm across her body, put her on her back on the floor and in an incredibly firm voice told her to stop it. It’s how the alphas in the wild discipline the rest of their pack.
Well, technically, they probably use teeth around the neck, but I wasn’t going to go that far.
My method actually worked, though. She realized I meant business and she did stop nipping.
But, see, the thing is, from them on when we walked, she behaved, but she kept giving me these sidelong glances. I knew she was looking to see if I was watching. I would tell her, “Yeah, I see you and you better not do it again.”
She’d immediately look straight ahead and continue walking and behaving as though that’s what she’d been doing all along.
I had to turn my head away so she wouldn’t see me laugh. There’s just something about when a dog gives you that look that never fails to make me chuckle, but it doesn’t help maintain the alpha status in discipline.
It’s just so tough when they’re being so darn cute!
Now cats on the other hand are a totally different creatures. I think some of my felines actually like it when I yell at them. It’s almost like they anticipate me finding them doing something bad and when I say, “Knock it off!” they’ll zip into the other room with a tail twitching and a bounce in their step.
They never go far. Indeed, it’s usually only minutes until they return to discover what other kinds of trouble they can get into.
The sad thing is even that will make me chuckle. My cats have me wrapped around their paws and they, unfortunately, know it.
Most of the animals at the shelter know it, too.
I’m a firm believer in finding joy in life – even in the smallest things. And one of the best places for me to find real laughter and happiness is spending some time with a four-legged friend and watching that personality shine through.
Jennifer Vanderau is the public relations coordinator for the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter and can be reached at [email protected]. The shelter accepts both monetary and pet supply donations. For more information, readers may call the shelter at 717-263-5791 or visit the website www.cvas-pets.org. CVAS also operates a thrift store in Chambersburg. Help support the animals at the shelter by donating to or shopping at the store.
