Me & Jay hit the trail

Jay and I walked about two hours today; along the lake, up the curvy dirt road, past the fields, and through the woods. He did a good job of protecting me too- even though he stopped a million times to mark his territory. If you haven’t already figured it out already, Jay is the Lhotka’s dog. A black lab mix, actually. He’s pretty mellow as dogs go, and he understands my Dog Rules: do not jump on me, and don’t lick my face. And don’t hand me any of that, dogs mouths are cleaner than humans, stuff. They lick everything, and that means everything, without discrimination or good taste.

So anyway, I was explaining how he was protecting me from dangerous predators, like wild turkeys and butterflies, as well as dragonflies and eagles circling overhead. About the only thing he’s completely useless for is protecting me from men and children.

One guy approached me on his ATV, with two little kids piled on for a ride. Jay did not bark ferociously; in fact, he trotted happily right up to them, wagging his tail, looking like he was gonna try to jump up on them and lick them all, tail a waggin’. Maybe he thought they didn’t have the same rules as I do. Can’t blame him for trying, but God help me if a serial killer gets loose in these woods. Best I could hope for is that he’d slobber ‘im to death.

We only stopped once along the trail, at the public access, so I could get a little break, and Jay could jump in and cool down. I was kinda jealous. I had not brought my swimsuit, so unless I wanted to take my chances with a public appearance, I needed to save swimming for later. I didn’t want to get caught in my skivvies in front of a brown sign that said ‘Public Access’. Lord knows Jay wouldn’t be able to protect me from unsavory types.

We headed back down the dusty trail home, enjoying the puffs of breeze off the lake. I thought to myself, Jay was fine company, even if he’s a lousy protector. If I lived in the country, I would want a dog. A good sized dog, one that could keep up with me on long walks, and for taking his place near me at the end of the dock. Even if he couldn't protect me from wild bears or mountain men, I'd be willing to chance it.