HE DIDN'T FREAK OUT

BUT we did…at least for a moment or two.

By now you know that if I love you, I will go above and beyond to answer a call for help which is why I occasionally dog sit the old dog owned by my son, loved by husband and neighbors and more than tolerated by me.

These dog sitting events are never without a defining adventure – some more than others. The most recent involved the canine being ushered to the back door to take care of his “business” before all of us went to bed. It was after 10 PM. He was escorted to the deck steps that descended into the semi-dark backyard and with a verbal and hand command told where to go and what to do. The dog uncharacteristically disobeyed and ran toward an unknown moving critter. The critter felt threatened and did what any wild animal will do when threatened – defended itself. Canaan (dog’s name) was skunked smack in the middle of his face. He retreated quickly and ran straight to his escort, my husband, skunking his arm and hand. Needless to say, I was urgently summoned and project DESKUNK commenced.

A hurriedly conducted internet search produced several commercially available remedies – not an option for us at 10 PM. Tomato juice was an option – I don’t keep tomato juice in the pantry. The DYI suggestion of a solution of hydrogen peroxide, baking soda and a small amount of dishwashing detergent seemed our best bet. It worked on the hubby. After completely lathering up the pooch and allowing the solution to sit for several minutes, we rinsed, reapplied, rinsed, and dried his coat. It worked well enough for the dog to be allowed inside. We finally retired shortly after 11 PM, traumatized but relatively skunk free.

Some animals have a gift that we should all want. Our canine ward lived into his moment of extreme stress by embracing his reality with a grace and dignity that my husband didn’t exhibit. He trusted that we would take care of him and waited for us to figure out the solution. There were no signs of anxiety, and he became agitated only after the solution got in his eyes, our mistake.

Here are a few cues we can take from Canaan. RUN toward help not away from it no matter how bad you feel (smell) in a crisis. Focus on getting help from the resources that are available, not those you wish were present. Anxiety and overreacting seldom solves anything. Canaan seemed to know that we could be trusted to manage his delicate situation. We did.

Psalm 91:15

PONDER THIS THOUGHT---What happened cannot be changed. What happens next is up to you.