The Dog Day Morning

Madeleine Cox takes time out with dogs Skye Lark and George Bear.

Friday morning, the day before Valentine’s Day. Late summer, or early Bunuru as Whadjuk Noongar people say. Whichever you choose, the ebb and flow of the winds from the east to the sea breeze in the south west are settling into a gentler pattern. The air around feels a little closer, more humid, and here in Walyalup, our big blue skies continue to welcome us each day.

Mum dropped around, and we had a rare quiet moment just the two of us, sitting with a cup of tea in the backyard, not long after school was in. Except, it wasn’t just the two of us. George Bear who is red and feisty beyond his stature, and Skye Lark, a white bundle of energy and joy, were right there with us. Just where they always prefer to be.

George Bear on left, Madeleine and Skye Lark on right. Photos taken by Paige Burton, dogsofthesuburbs.com

George Bear is true to the temperament of Lakeland Terriers of old, bred to hunt vermin in the Lakes District of England. His adorable slightly stumpy tail is also a sturdy handle, his breeder told us. In days gone past the farmer would grab the tail to pull the terrier from the burrow, presumably with prey in mouth.

Skye Lark is a standard poodle and there is nothing standard about her. One day, I hope she will swim as her breed name suggests she will. Poodle is not French as is commonly thought, but originates in Germany, where it was known as a ‘Pudel,’ derived from the German word ‘pudeln’, meaning to splash in the water. This is Skye Lark all the way through to her deepest, joyful heart: in the shallows she splashes, yet at the tender age of 3 still lacks the confidence to allow the sea to support her with feet off the seabed.

Together, Skye Lark and George Bear can be quite a handful. And that was how they greeted Mum, vying for her attention.

So I invited Mum, after we had sat down, to pat her legs and encourage George Bear to sit on her lap. Sitting on laps might just be George Bear’s favourite thing to do. At least it’s when he’s happiest and most at ease. George Bear’s other job is guarding over us, which he is marvellous at because he has super-hearing. George Bear, and Skye Lark too, always let us know when there might be someone about to knock on the front door. George Bear is the one though, who’s hearing is most attuned to chasing away all the rats that like to scamper around our garden at night.

Once George Bear was comfortably in Mum’s lap, Skye Lark eased back towards me. I said ‘settle petal’, and this prompted Skye Lark to sit right in between Mum with George Bear on her lap, and me with Skye Lark by my side. As Mum and I chatted away, we noticed the song of the 28’s flying to rest in the branches of the gum tree which shades most of our backyard, depending on the position of the sun. I said to Mum, ‘Didyou know the 28’s are named for the French for 28, ‘vingt huit’ – pronounced vun tweet, which was thought to be how their bird call sounded?’

Before Mum could answer, George Bear leapt off Mum’s lap to make his way to the grass under the gum tree. Skye Lark followed suit and danced around him, as if saying, ‘Please play with me, George Bear.’

George Bear was having none of that. He was in need of business. The kind of business all creatures find themselves in need of from time to time. Skye Lark backed away and promptly returned to my side, in between Mum and me. We all watched as George Bear turned his head away from us. This left us to choose whether to watch what was happening at his bottom end. I couldn’t help but look away.

Once George Bear had finished his business, he did a fast about-turn and scampered along reminding me of Piglet from AA Milne’s ‘Winnie-the-Pooh’. And yes, ‘Pooh’ had been George’s business. Skye Lark thought it was time to play. Again George Bear ignored her and went directly to Mum. ‘Can I hop up again, please?’ George said, with his golden brown teddy-bear eyes. Bit hard to resist.

With George Bear at ease on Mum’s lap once more, Skye Lark took herself off directly to the place of ‘pooh’, and promptly showered ‘wee’ all over George Bear’s ‘pooh’. I thought to myself, ‘I wonder if that helps the ‘pooh’ break down?’ Will have to look into that. Then Skye Lark returned to my side.

George Bear must have heard something. Mum, Skye Lark and I hadn’t noticed anything, except for the big blue sky, the greenery all around and the birds coming and going with their sweet song. I said to Mum, ‘Why did they say blue and green should never be seen?’  To me just then, blue and green seemed the most beautiful of colours partnered together. Could it be perfect harmony?

Again, George Bear diverted our attention. He gently jumped off Mum’s lap and trod softly with his tail down between his legs towards the garage. The door was ajar a little so he let himself in. Not for too long. Long enough to satisfy himself that there was nothing amiss.

By my side, Skye Lark with her dark penetrating eyes observed every step George Bear took. As soon as George Bear was returning to us, Skye Lark directly went to the garage to see for herself. Again, there was nothing amiss and she returned to us as well.

And so all four of us found ourselves at ease, settled in fact. Able to really enjoy our cups of tea, our companionship and a brief but beautiful symphonic moment outside under the gum tree. Just as our planet interchanges the positions of magnetic north and magnetic south from time to time, for a brief moment, there was equanimity at home.

Recommendations for musings on Dogs:

‘Dog Songs’ by Mary Oliver
‘Dogs never lie About Love’ by Jeffrey Mason,
‘Little Book of Dogs’ published by the National Library of Australia, 2008
‘Red Dog: The Pilbara Wanderer’ by Beverley Duckett, 1933
‘The Incredible Journey’ by Sheila Burnford, 1961
‘White Fang’ by Jack London, 1906
‘Hairy Maclary from Donaldson’s Dairy’ by Lynley Dodd, 1983
‘Go Dog Go’ by P D Eastman, 1961

By Madeleine Cox

* Madeleine Cox was raised on a farm on Bindjareb Noongar country and now, together with her New Zealand/Aotearoa husband, lives with their children in Fremantle/Walyalup. She loves exploring places and ideas, and connecting with people and nature. This has compelled Madeleine to start writing independently, after many years work as a corporate and government lawyer, and service on not-for-profit boards in the health and education sectors.

~ For more articles by Madeleine Cox on FSN, look here.

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