Sophia, editor for Clean My Water Dish, talked most of TLL.net staff into attending last weekend’s Bark In The Park.
Most in her element was MVP’s beloved Welsh springer spaniel, Jazzy, who was groomed specially for the event.
“She’s just perfect,” cooed The Scottish Geisha who brought along her rare Boykin Spaniel Mocha-san along for the day. While fending off most dogs and their owners with warnings of, “She’s had a very long day and is…over stimulated,” Mocha-san didn’t socialize much but seemed rather taken with a 250-pound Newfoundland all the same.
“She’s really rather over fond of…very large male dogs,” The Scottish Geisha said with genuine wonder in her voice.
Some of us saw a parallel to The Scottish Geisha's obsession with hockey but wisely decided not to bring it up.
While most of us cooled our heels in the shade Jazzy took it upon herself to meet and greet as many of the 3,000 dogs in attendance as she could. The Scottish Geisha’s beautiful boxer, Brandi, put in an appearance, cousin TJ hobbling on a walking cast by the time.
“You didn’t mean to break your mommy’s ankle did you sweetie?” The Scottish Geisha cooed again, this time to a clearly adoring Brandi.
“She was at a soccer game this morning,” TJ said wearily, adding that the tactic seems to have worn Brandi down to the point that she socialized quite sweetly with all there.
Everyone enjoyed watching Jazzy’s first encounter with an agility course. Instinctively already a champ, she did splendid until the final course objective, a plastic tunnel.
This went over as well as the doggie ice cream, this year, peanut butter flavored. Aside from this culinary faux pas, the event was surprisingly mellow. For a $5 ‘donation’ dogs are registered (owners, explained Sophia, are extraneous to the cause) and given an information which most extraneous owners tend to hold on to. Vendors offering everything from dog training, equipment and puppy day care, offer their wares in a tidy circle of booths that surrounded a large agility course that everyone was free to try out.
And then there are the dogs. Breeds of many, many kinds. A surprising number of pit bulls, mingling calmly with tiny Chihuahuas and interspersed with virtual posses of bulldogs (owners appear to travel in packs). Highlights included a duo of giant NewFoundlands who calmly and professionally posed over and over for amateur photographers. “They are used to it,” explained one of their proud owners. That and a stunning smoke-gray mastiff who, despite the bored expression on his face, was so unusual that he stopped two and four footed traffic alike. “He’s pretty mellow for a nine month old,” the owner said of the 180-pound pup.
The Scottish Geisha stroked his massive head gently with her long nails. “He’s lovely,” she whispered, understanding, unlike most owners, that dogs have acute hearing as well as smell.
The mastiff was smitten.
And so were we all. With Bark In The Park that is.
Sophia amused and impressed staffers throughout the day by pointing out more unusual breeds. Toward the end of the event, while others cooled their pets under the misting tent, Sophia sped off to exchange words with the owner of two very young German Short-Haired pointer pups.
What did she talk about?
“I had to tell him how sorry I was,” she explained.
Sorry?
“He said he’d never owned German short-hairs,” she explained. “I thought somebody should warn him. Or at least express their condolences.”