| Hello! My name is Peaches and I'm a puppy. Well, let me clarify that.
I'm not really a puppy any more but my Mom calls me her Wonder Puppy. I
try to show her that I am grown up now and can bark for myself but it's
no use. So, I've learned to live with the puppy part and besides, it gets
me treats. |
|
| If you wonder how I came to be named Peaches I can say it wasn’t my choice.
I think it was my Mom who said the small beige markings on my ears and
back made her think of peaches in cream. Anyway, that is my name and to
tell the truth, I like the Wonder Puppy part, too. |
Peaches is second from left... |
Now maybe you think I’m like one of those city pups who loafs around
all day but you’d be wrong. I have a job to do just like you do. I get
up with Mom and watch to be sure she brushes her teeth and washes up
like she is supposed to. People have to do these things every day which
is a good reason to be a dog! Once she is done we go downstairs and I
go outside for a good sniff and piddle before breakfast. |
Peaches is third from left... |
| I am a very patient puppy. I lie in the sunlight from the dining room
windows and wait for my Mom to finish her breakfast. I do this because
I know she will save a bite for me. Moms are good that way. Once I’ve had
my breakfast treat I head outside and there is a lot of it, believe me. |
Peaches is on the left... |
| There used to be big tall plants – Mom called them ugly weeds – all over
the place. It was a lot of fun to hop up and over and through them, making
little nests to hide in. Well, Mom is not a weed person so they “had to
go” and in their place they put in lots of big sticks and wires and planted
little leafy green things that grew and grew. You know what they turned
out to be? Grapes. They are all over the place and the worst part about
it is that I’m not allowed to eat them. Life can be tough for a dog. |
Peaches in the weeds, March 2000 |
| Usually I walk around our home, Honey Oak House. It used to be muddy
but now we have grass. I remember one day a big truck came and out fell
piles of grass. It was too high to walk on. Soon some men came and Dad
and the men started taking the piles apart and putting them down on the
ground around our home. Mom and I watched from the porch for a long time.
Finally I decided it was time to have a look – to be sure things were being
done right. It took only a few steps to know that this was what had been
missing. It smelled wonderful and felt wonderful. Wow can I run on grass!
I can roll on grass real good, too. I just love grass, don’t you? |
First harvest inspecting grapes, 2002
After harvest, Peaches takes a bath
|
| Anyway, enough about grass. I’m too busy to spend much time playing.
I have to patrol the house and look for things. I can’t tell you what things
to look for, this is the part of the job that is tough. You just have to
look. Sooner or later some thing will be there and you will know it and
you must bark. Sometimes it is a bird, sometimes a car or truck with people
inside. Sometimes it is a noise. Barking is a hard job but someone has
to do it. |
Peaches & Daphne before grass
|
| We get a lot of visitors at our home because it is a B&B. My job
is to check out their cars. Cars are full of smells – more smells than
people – and they are especially smelly underneath and on their tires.
I always give these a thorough smelling each time the car comes just to
be sure. |
Inspecting Dad's tractor |
| You can see I’ve got a lot to do just patrolling and car sniffing and
barking but there’s more. I help Mom a lot, watching to be sure she does
things right. I watch Dad for the same reason. Sometimes they seem over
worked so I play with them. A little play time helps to break up the work
day, don’t you think? |
Dad playing with me when I was a puppy
|
| My days are busy but I still take a break now and then. My favorite thing
to do is lie in the sun on one of our porches. Sometimes I fall asleep
but eventually I have to get back to work. Someday I’ll retire and lie
in the sun all day long! |
Peaches lying in the grass sunning herself
|
| My work doesn’t stop when the sun goes down. At night I have two major
jobs to do: I have to remind Dad not to forget to give me a bite of his
dinner and I have to help Mom and Dad watch TV. Now, sometimes Dad just
ignores me about the bite but I know if I keep it up he will remember,
so I do. The TV is a bigger problem. |
Peaches working hard
|
Dad doesn’t understand my TV job. He thinks I should just sit and watch
like he does. He doesn’t understand that I have to warn him about the animals.
I can see them right there but he doesn’t seem to know they could get out.
I bark and bark, to tell them to stay where they are. Sometimes I have
to growl too when something strange happens. Do you know that people don’t
fly? Mom and Dad would miss lots of stuff if I didn’t warm them. TV is
a lot of work!
|
Peaches watching t.v. |
| By the time Mom goes up to bed I’m ready! I can hardly wait for her to
get the bed ready. Wow! It feels so good to curl up on the bed between
Mom and Dad. Tomorrow there will be lots of things to do but in bed I sleep
like a rock. Nothing moves me til morning. |
 |
That’s my life. It’s busy and fun, full of new things and people.
If you come to visit I will bark at you, day or night, and sniff your
tires. A treat is a good thing so you might think about that and I have
toys. We could play. Hope you come soon.
Peaches Laraneta
aka The Wonder Puppy |
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