YOU SAID WE WERE GOING ORGANIC

I guess Pearl Bailey took me literally.

November is the month when we lay down mulch on the property. That, of course, includes all the beds down in Pearl Bailey’s Shangri-La. After the huge task is completed, the property is just lovely with its outlined definitions. It is a big undertaking and takes the good part of the day to complete. During this process, the dogs need to remain sequestered indoors as I am sure you have already guessed.

Once the crew had finished, I had a very stern talk with Pearl Bailey and Ella. Ella, true to her nature, did not react or acknowledge anything I had to say. But Pearl Bailey, on the other hand, listened intently. I swear her vocabulary increases every day. Well, she listened to my warnings about not rolling around in the cocoa brown mulch, but did not heed them. No surprise there.

This is how I found her just moments after I had let her loose. I guess it’s just that instinctual canine behavior coming forward in her mind again. I mean why else would this otherwise apparently sane dog willfully roll around in an odorific smell? I needed to find why so I could understand this leftover behavior from when dogs were still wild and had to hunt for a living, so I went to Google to noodle around.

I read one theory that I deemed plausible (but with no scientific merit). This theory explores the dominant senses of humans vs. the dominant senses of canines. In human beings, the dominant sense is our vision, while in dogs it is their sense of smell. Whereas sensory stimulation is shared by both species, it seems canines may be prone to seeking such stimulation to an excessive degree. So, I guess one can liken Pearl Bailey’s overly developed sensory capacity for rolling in smelly organic matter to a human’s misguided sense of visual stimulation in wearing overly loud and objectionable clothing while on vacation!