That Dog in the Hat
What unites us dog-lovers is the idea of having and being a Companion. That’s core to our purpose here at Dogologie, and we’ve enjoyed sharing stories from our friend-base that we’ve built through the store. Years ago we met Jerry and his Schnoodle, Piper. They picked up a sun-hat from us because Piper loves the beach and needed some protection for her eyes during the long hours she spends dipping her snout in the water and running back up the beach about a thousand times before finally deciding to jump in. It’s hard work, all that beach-running, and her personality has us brimming with smiles and approving barks!
Piper Adventures
Jerry and his wife Sharon own an RV, along with Piper who drives upfront with them and has seen nearly all the major highways in the USA. Piper’s covered over 60,000 miles, from the top of Pikes Peak, the oceans on both coasts, and on up to Crater Lake; this is one well-traveled dog! She’s an adventuresome little spirit and Jerry says, “She’s smart, learns easily, loves to play, but is still so affectionate; she always has to be touching someone.”
From cross-country rides to top-down convertible trips to a nearby park, she’s that lap-ridin’ tongue out the window sort who’s eager to show up and sad to leave. She’s entirely unafraid of water and on one trip, at the end of a long and hot walk, she saw a duck in a pond and took off faster than greased lightning. No matter what, she had to have that duck! She frolicked for a while then emerged looking like a wet rat, but a very happy one nonetheless! (without the duck, of course, she’s not a lab!)
This hat has been the source of so many new connections. Whenever Jerry and Sharon take her to Florida, the hat is a fixture, and people recognize them because of their iconic little dog and her fine piece of headgear. She’s the subject of uncountable photos from passersby and the attention only keeps her going! It’s become her iconic accessory and an apt pairing to her personality.
Never a Dull Moment
At home, she’s no different. Lively and hilarious and always ready to play. “We have a picture of her as a puppy with a ball in her mouth, come to think of it, we don’t have many pictures of her without one!”
Piper is a Ball-toss expert. But you can’t go easy on her, she plays shortstop and only has fun if there’s some “Heat on the Pitch”. The faster and harder the better! See for yourself:
She’s got this other trick where she listens for Jerry to order Pizza using Siri on his phone. If she hears his order, she’ll wait at the front window until it arrives! When the delivery guy shows up, she goes ballistic with excitement. No, there’s never a dull moment in life with Piper, but isn’t that just what makes us dog-lovers? We love their creativity and their energy is something that energizes us! Jerry put it best, “She makes you smile every day, you never know what she’ll come up with, that’s why she’s a central part of our life!”
Bringing Us Together
The best thing about Piper is that she is an initiator. She loves to bark at dogs in TV commercials, but when it’s time to get out, she functions better than any activity alarm. “We go on car rides because she asks us to,” Said Jerry, “She gives us the reason to get out, and to walk.” But Piper’s clever, remember, and she has more on her agenda than just exercise.
Piper’s on a mission to bring people together. Every kid in the neighborhood knows her name, stops their bike to pet her, slows down to say hi. All but one. This young boy moved in down the street, and for some reason, was terrified of dogs. Piper could sense this. And whenever they met on the street, she slowed down, calmed down, and would just smile and wag her tail at this little boy. After a few months, he ventured some contact and after petting Piper, received a few soft licks on the hand. Now, they’re friends. And this boy’s not afraid of dogs anymore! In fact, he just got his own, and he looks a lot like Piper!
See, Piper is a purposeful companion. She knows that what’s best about people is our ability to be together, to join in the laughter, to be playful. Our dogs bring out what is best in people, give us something to be encouraged by, inspired from. They mean so much to us because they show us what it means to actually care for each other.
If you have a Dog Story. Do what Piper did, and Send it to us here.
*Thanks to Sharon for the painting, "Piper at the Beach" and thanks to Jerry for the videos.