Don't let this get around, but our dog Rudi gets stranger and stranger. He already hates everyone--he's the archetype and inspiration for Kurtz the Dog in that respect--but he's taken on some new habits that lead us to suspect he's more than just vicious, he's crazy. Take last night. He retreated to a closet--something he's never done before--and commenced barking. Now barking is something Rudi loves doing--it's his vocation so to speak--but going into a closet to do it strikes us as sheer bonkers. He's also taken to licking our face to the point where it's sopping wet. In this he seems to be imitating our other dog, Maddie, who loves to lick our nostrils. The thing about Rudi, though, is that he doesn't--and don't ask us how we know this, we just do--seem to have a clue as to why he's doing it. It's simply beyond his control.
You get a dog and you get what you get. What we got with Rudi was a dog who hates the world but loves us to distraction. And for all his bravado, he's a big chicken at heart. Take thunder. At the first peal, he's under the bed, cowering. The same goes for fireworks. In Germany on New Years Eve, we had to sedate the poor guy. Unlike our other dog, however, he displays real courage. Maddie barks like mad at other dogs, but let them approach her and she practically crawls up our leg.
Despite their eccentricities, we love both dogs madly. You might even say we love them for their eccentricities. Sure, they drive us to distraction with their maladatation to existence, but they make up for that fourfold with their sheer unadulterated love for us. You should see the way they go mad everytime we stop over at Mrs. UF ex's for a visit. It makes our heart grow four times larger.
So we accept their odd and unsocial behavior, and we love them just the way they are. It's what makes pets so great. They love you unconditionally, and you love them unconditionally in return. Sure they'll drive you nuts, but it doesn't matter. They're the better people, furrier and smaller, and when they're on your lap just looking for affection, you find yourself wishing the whole world could be just like them.