Daphne has agreed to moderate this column regularly as a voice for Marsh Creek’s four-legged companions.

BOW WOW!!! 

What a great response to my inaugural column!  Thank you Paislee, Dazy, Sammy, Elie, Dexter, Ruby, Harley, Buddy, Winston & Clementyne, and everyone else who wrote (or had their folks write on their behalf)!!  Please spread the word!!

First, let’s welcome Tango to Marsh Creek!  Tango picked Jan and Dom Vita on Fiddler’s Point Drive to be his forever parents.  In his own words, “I’m 20 months old and look mostly like a black Labrador Retriever, but my ears and paws look like a Great Dane.  I was being trained at K9s for Wounded Warriors and almost made it, but since I get a little spooked by the weather, I made a career change.”  (Take it from me, Tango is super friendly!  And the white tip on his tail is too cute!  I’m such a flirt!)

On to my fan mail:  I’ve gotten a bunch; so I have to save some for future columns.   

“Dear Daphne, My name is Ruby and I’m a 10-lb. Havanese who lives in Boca.  (Full disclosure—Ruby is my first cousin on my human mom’s side).  I really enjoyed your column and wish that we could play together.  Every time the Amazon guy comes the house, I go crazy, running around and barking because I want to play.  These last few months, he is here almost every day.  My Mom gets upset because she’s playing Canasta on her computer and I disturb the game.  Do you have any suggestions?”  

Dear Ruby, You’re not alone!  This is a big problem for us friendly pooches!  I believe all of our human folks are shopping online during the pandemic; my dad is an extreme example!  My first thought was, ask your folks to stop shopping so much, but that doesn’t seem fair right now.  You’re so small, perhaps your mom can put you on her lap while she’s playing Canasta on her computer.  That would calm you down, while letting your mom give you some love.  (That goes for dad, too.)  I’m lucky to have an invisible fence, so I can go outside when deliveries come….UPS, FedEx, and USPS drivers will even play with me, tho Amazon not so much (I have to stay inside for that truck and be told to quiet down).  

“Dear Daphne, This is your BFF, Paislee.  I’m so glad you’re doing this for the community.  It’s a good way to make more doggie and kitty friends.  I would like to become friends with those big doggies in the neighborhood, and I pull my mom and dad all over to try and chase them.  Help!  How do I stop doing that?”  

Dear Paislee, You indeed are my BFF!  We have so much fun together!  I can’t wait until we can go somewhere so we both can be off leash and have a blast!  I think you’re referring to deer as “big doggies”.  They may have four legs, but they are NOT dogs!  And I don’t think they’re very interested in becoming friends.  Your mom is so good at working with you, I bet she can teach you to “stop” when you get the urge to chase a deer.  Just think of all the treats you’ll get while learning this new “trick”!  Another thought:  Let’s spread the word in encouraging our human neighbors to stop feeding the deer.  They get plenty to eat from our landscape, and we really don’t want them to advertise the buffet in our yards.  

Til next time…..Woof!!

Daphne