Happenings

photo credit: tedkerwin

Where exactly did I go wrong in training my dog? Why does my German Shepherd Timber believe that he is king of the Hulburt household? I’m not really sure where this holier-than-thou attitude originated from, or whether I even perpetuated it or not…however Timbers seems to truly believe that he reigns superior over his castle. This mind set was never more evident than one cold winter night when Mr. Hulburt had arrived home late from work.

Earlier that evening the kids and I had snuggled into bed together to keep warm. Unable to resist the temptation of snuggling up against our toasty warm bodies, Timber lept stealthily up onto the bed to lay down with us. However, Timber is not the typical dog who would be content to curl up at our feet. No, no, no…that simply would not do! Timber felt that he deserved a pillow and blankie too. So, he sauntered up to the head of the bed where he promptly pawed the covers until he had the perfect place to lay down. Upon plopping down onto his side, he gently laid his head down on the pillow with a hefty sigh. (I suppose I didn’t help the situation much when I reached over and covered him up with the blanket).

So there we lay-snoring and snoozing-Timber and I sleeping soundly on the edges of the bed with the kids nestled safely between us. When Mr. Hulburt arrived home late that night he was tired and wanted nothing more than to climb into bed. So he quietly began to shake Timber in an effort to wake him and make him move. No luck! So he shook a little harder and angrily whispered “Timber! Let’s Go! Get down!” A gesture that was met with a deep growl from Timber, who raised his head and glared deeply into my husband’s eyes as if to say, “Do you mind? I’m trying to sleep here!” The deep throated rumbling growl was enought to shock Mr. Hulburt who quickly turned and stomped out of the room to sleep on the couch.

And Timber? Well, he calmly lowered his head back onto the pillow and drifted back into doggy dreamland for the rest of the night. At that moment, he must have surely believed himself to be King of the Castle. But isn’t that how a dog is supposed to feel?