Tootsie Roll as Escape Artist

When I watch Tootsie Roll hobble around on her 17½ year old legs, I try to remember the little dog that used to run so fast and jump so high. The gleam in her eye just before she would start doing laps around the family room. Or, the “happy feet dance” that would greet us when we returned home. Or, her escape artist act. Yes, escape artist act.

When Tootsie was young, we lived in a house with a narrow, fenced-in yard. Because we worked long hours, we had a doggie door that allowed our dogs access to the backyard. Our nice, quiet neighborhood allowed us to give the dogs that kind of freedom. Everything was working beautifully until one fall, when we started getting reports that Tootsie was escaping from our yard while we were gone. Fortunately, our neighbors all knew her and would just return her to the yard when they found her wandering around. But, we could not figure out how she was managing this feat.

A thorough examination of the fence showed no holes had been dug under the fence, and a few small gaps in the fence were promptly plugged. She still managed to get out. Some sections of the fence were a little shorter than the rest of the fence, and these were brought up to code. She was still getting out. Various theories were postulated by our neighbors. Maybe she was somehow climbing the fence. Maybe she was a much better jumper than we had imagined. Maybe she had magic powers.

One day while doing the dishes, I looked out the window to find our little Tootsie Roll walking around on the deck railing. Pretty as you please, she was 3 feet above the deck, walking the railing like it was a balance beam. Upon further examination, we discovered that our deck furniture had been stacked and pushed into a corner of the deck. Our little darling would climb up the deck furniture, walk along the railing until it met our neighbor’s fence, jump over the fence and she was gone. We moved the furniture toward the middle of the deck and never had the problem again.

Alas, we will never see Tootsie pull that kind of stunt again. Like many older dogs, she is afflicted with arthritis. In fact, arthritis affects one in every five adult dogs in the US, and is one of the most common sources of chronic pain that veterinarians treat. See my next post for more information about arthritis and mobility problems in dogs.

I welcome you to share memories of your old dog's glory days in the Comments section.