This apparently meant that we were marooned and there would be no morning run.
“Because apparently there are no trailheads in this whole darned forest! Everything says not to stop.” Now that we’re living in a car-house we need to be careful of rules. Just like some people don’t like dogs and so don’t let me in their buildings and on their trails, other people don’t like people who don’t have houses. So we need to be respectful.
Finally, after we had gone so far that I was sure we were going to fall off the edge of the world, we came to a city. That’s where Mom saw a sign for a waterfront trail. When we pulled off the highway there was a second sign. If we turned left then we could run along the waterfront, if we turned right we could run in the forest. “Forest, please!” I said.
The forest was way far away behind the city, on a road that didn’t like car-houses and kept kicking us. When we got out of the car-house a sign said, “Dogs must be on leash or under voice control.” “What’s voice control?” I asked Mom. “Is that like when I want to bark, but I just growl instead?” “No, it means that you have to come to me when I call you, no matter what.” “Okay,” I said. “Promise.” Now that I’m 4, I can handle more responsibility*, which is another word for being off leash. When I wear responsibility instead of a leash I can stop and smell something interesting or drink from a puddle, or run on the bushes instead of the trail. Mom doesn’t need to wait for me and can keep moving in straight lines as fast as she can and miss all the good stuff, just like she likes to do. If she gets ahead, responsibility tells me that I’ve gotten too far away and pulls me back into range.
a leash works like love. Without the leash, doggy telepathy sometimes makes it feel like Mom and I are like two parts of the same runner.
“Mom, do you ever think that we’re the same person?” I asked. Mom didn’t answer, but I think I know the answer…
…it’s NO, duh! People can’t see the things that dogs see. That’s impossible!
-Oscar the Pooch
#leashlaws #Dogrunning #roadtrip #fortbragg #carcamping #cartrouble #humboldtcoast #dogcamping
