Damn it, Badger!

I have mentioned him before a few times.  I should tell you more about him. 

DamnitBadger. 

Brian had a dog named Max for many years.  Max was one of the good guys; the kind of dog who always knew what you were thinking and never judged.  He only asked for a walk each day and a big bowl of food to eat.  His pleasures were simple.  He was a big, fluffy, beautiful, lion-hearted dog.  But, as we always must, the time came to say goodbye to Max.

And a few months later, Brian was ready for a new sidekick.  He was interested in Australian shepards.  I had one as a child, and had loved him very much.  I currently have a loving, intelligent border collie, Bear, who generally doesn't have a thought that he doesn't ask me for first, and Brian craved a similar relationship.  For example, Bear requires no leash when I take him out.  For all of Max's excellent qualities, blind faithfulness of that kind was not among them. 

So, we took a Sunday drive out to Lipan (almost two hours) to an elaborate horse ranch to meet two Aussie pups for sale I found in the paper.  One red merle male and one red and white female.  They were both beautiful animals, clearly well taken care of, though they had spent all of their eight weeks on earth in the barn. 

Brian chose the flashy, red merle male and away we went.  On the way home we talked about names.  I thought Vegas would be a great name.  He was born on 7/7/07.  Brian wanted to name him Badger.  Brian's dog, Brian's choice of name. 

As Badger settled in to his new surroundings, it was clear that he was full of personality.  He loved to play, even when no one else wanted to.  Bear, five years Badger's senior, tolerated him well, but could only take so much.  My cat, Azalea, made no pretense.  She loves Bear and loathes Badger with her mind, body and soul.  Bear does his best to keep the peace, putting himself between the two of them when Azalea starts fussing.  In Badger's defense, he just wants to play with her, but he's too rough and doesn't understand.  The cat is just a grouch and enjoys it.

Damnitbadger!

Badger will do whatever it takes to get noticed and get play time...thus his nickname.  He steals a shoe from the closet and brings it to the pet bed in the living room and looks up at us, so proud of himself.  He steals the shoe right out of your hand that you are attempting to put on your foot.  He steals other things too to gnaw on while forming his next plan.

Damnitbadger!

He isn't the most graceful of creatures.  As he bounds through our tiny house, he is likely to knock into coffee tables, chairs, etc. on his way to wherever he's going next. 

Damnitbadger!

He has a very grown up bark for a 40 pound dog and he loves to use it, even when there appears to be nothing in the yard at which to bark. 

Badger!

If you sneeze, it's quite likely that seconds later that 40 pound dog will be in your lap.  The only explanation we have for that is that the early days in the horse barn were a little intimidating with horses sneezing.  While sweet in intention, it's uncomfortable in actuality.

Badger!!

He's a relentless barker in the backyard if a neighbor dares to spend time in their own backyard, especially children.  And the mailman?  Forget it.  He sounds as though he wants to eat the poor man.  If he ever actually met any of these people, he would probably just lick them to death, but no one would want to meet him because he sounds so unfriendly.

Badger!

Taken all together, he's really a great dog.  He did graduate from obedience school, and he will sit for his cookie.  His daddy loves him and I do, too....some days are just a little harder than others...like when I am fighting for my part of the double bed we currently sleep in.  The dog thinks it's much more comfortable to sleep with Daddy than it is on the floor, the couch or the pet beds, so one of my constant battles is trying to get him off the bed. Sigh.

Damn it, Badger!