If you could make your Great Dane understand just one thing, what would it be?
For me, it would be: please, no more leaving those “glitter flowers” on the walls and the TV! And maybe keep the shoestrings of slobber in your mouth instead of dripping them on my legs or dribbling all over the toilet seat.
I’d also love for them to understand that they aren’t actually lap dogs. Like my Anna—she’ll decide the best place to stretch out is on the steps right in front of you, leaning in and just letting go. Or when they play “hog the bed.” Try having four or five of them in there at once! I end up with Buns of Steel because I’m sleeping with one cheek on the mattress and the other balancing on the nightstand.
The boys love to roll over on their backs to air everything out, and there is nothing like rolling over in the middle of the night and realizing you’ve got a sack of dog nuts right in your face! Between that, them getting so excited they throw their head at you and break your glasses, and them leaning in close for some love only to just let one rip—it’s a lot to handle.
But the truth is, as much as those things might agitate us in the moment, they become the memories we hold onto. I wouldn’t trade any of it for the world, and I wouldn’t get rid of any of it for anything. When they are gone, those little messes, the blocked hallways, and even the crowded beds are reminders of the life and love they shared with us. Every spot on the wall is a precious piece of the time we had together.
What about your Dane? If you could whisper one thing in their ear and know they truly understood it, what would you say?