What are they reading?... Bella and Kashmir don't watch TV, no siree! These spaniels spend their evenings reading the classics - Dante's Inferno ("It's so scary!") and Homer's "The Odysee"... or is it "The Illiad"? - ("Why didn't the guy just stay home or take the train?") When asked about Oprah's Book Club, both dogs barked, "We like things a little more high-brow!" Fair enough. It just affirms the old saying, "Spaniels read things other dogs don't."
Some people complain that the Beltline is a lawless place - dogs running wild, leashless and free! Nothing could be further from the truth. There are several dogs that patrol the area quite regularily. Witness Oscar, a Shnauzer, seemingly sunning himself on a nice patch of grass. However, in the close-up picture, you'll notice that Oscar is on high alert! Nose in full sniff, ears aquiver with anticipation, muscles tensed and coiled! He is ready, at a moment's notice, to spring into action and take charge of any untoward dog behaviour. Many of us have witnessed him stepping in when dog play gets too rough. With blinding speed, Oscar pins the offending dog, and holds him until a more congenial attitude is resumed. Thank-you Oscar!
Some of the older dogs on the beltline are concerned about the amount of vicious ear-pulling going on. "Fun is fun," barks Dooley, "but I draw the line at my ears!" No names have been released, but rumour has it that a certain MAWF (aka Frankee) is the worst offender. "Off", "let go!", "Stop it right now or you will have a big time out little sir!" have all been shouted quite fiercly... to no avail. The MAWF persists and Dooley suffers. Perhaps the solution lies in Bitter Apple, a product used to stop puppies from chewing on furniture. Dooley, however, refuses to apply the product to his dangly appendages, claiming that, "My ears are not furniture!" and "Frankee should know better!". Two very good points Dooley!
Nic, or Nico, although a large, manly dog, will occasionally wear a "chapeau" on the Beltline. Rumour has it that Nic once spent a summer in gay Paris, or "on the continent". (A lot of dogs ask, "Where is the continent?" How do you explain geography to dogs that have only travelled to the cottage and back? You don't. You merely say, "It is very, very far away, and if you don't stop eating poop I will send you there too!)
