I am blessed to be the mom of a crazy dog by the name of Griffin. Griffin is a 75-pound Lab mix and has been crazy most of his life.

When Griffin was eight months old, he and I moved into our home. I work from home and wanted to prepare my office in our finished basement. I had new carpet installed and thought a fresh coat of paint would look nice. Mom offered to help paint. We didn’t have a dog growing up, so Mom wasn’t used to thinking about “puppy proofing.” About 15 minutes into painting, I glanced over to make sure Griffin was still playing with his toy and, in slow motion, I watched him pull the wooden paint stick from the paint can and begin to run. I began to run, in slow motion it seemed, after him. He thought it was a game, so he ran faster. Paint dripped all over my new carpet. He got stuck once, just as I thought I had him, and he managed to push himself through the small space splattering the paint all over my black leather sofa and chair. I caught him after only a few minutes on the run; however, he needed a bath, the carpet had to be scrubbed, and the furniture cleaned.

Griffin has never liked squirrels. Unfortunately, we live on a
street lined with large trees, so there are many, many squirrels in our neighbourhood. One sunny afternoon, we were meeting our two neighbours and their dogs for a walk. Along the way, a squirrel looked too good to resist and Griffin began chasing it. Since I was on the other end of the leash, I began chasing Griffin, chasing the squirrel. We were running toward the right side of the tree and at the last second, Griffin made a quick turn to the left…. we met around the tree. The squirrel wasn’t sure what to do and decided I looked like I could protect him and jumped onto my chest, digging his nails into my shirt. I began screaming, Griffin began barking, and the poor squirrel jumped off my shirt and ran off. I suspect the squirrel had a nervous breakdown shortly thereafter….

A couple of years ago, I broke my ankle. I was very concerned about taking Griffin for a walk because he definitely needs a walk each day to get rid of excess energy. Mom came up with the idea that we would borrow her sister’s wheelchair, she would push me, I would hold onto Griffin’s leash, and he could get a
short walk. I reluctantly agreed. I had never been in a wheelchair before, so I carefully sat down, propped my broken ankle and cast on the foot rest and we took off. I really didn’t know my Mom could walk that fast. I was getting a little concerned so I turned around to ask her to slow down and she wasn’t there. She stopped to shut the gate to the fence and Griffin had taken off with me. I began screaming and dragging my other foot. Mom was running and trying to catch us. Thank goodness I have a long driveway. We stopped just before running into the street.

Now with Mom holding on, we began down the street. About mid-way down the street, there was a little branch and I thought we might get stuck, so I leaned over to move it. About that time, a squirrel (yes, another squirrel) ran across the street. Griffin took off, pulling me out of the wheelchair and into the street. Needless to say, we didn’t try the wheelchair again. I sucked it up and walked Griffin a mile each day on my broken ankle.

Being 75 pounds, Griffin walks very heavily and his tags jingle, so I normally know where he is. One day, I was in the kitchen eating lunch and watching television. Griffin somehow walked into the kitchen very quietly, sat behind me, and apparently waited for me to take a drink. Just as I picked up my soda to take a sip, he began to machine gun bark. He barks very deep and very loud and even if you’re expecting it, it can still startle you. Needless to say, I jumped so hard my soda went airborne and spun around several times in the air before landing on my shirt and lap, spilling all over me. Griffin seemed to smile and then walked back into the living room wagging his tail. He loves a
good prank. I, on the other hand, walk around the house like Wyle E. Coyote after taking earthquake pills.

Even with all of his craziness, I wouldn’t change him. I love Griffin just the way he is and I love his personality.

 

 

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