Well-rested, well-tested

While we are in the midst of the dog days of summer, I have been thinking about the dogs in my life. I have three: our bouncing beagle Belle, and my two rescued granddogs, Turner and Cole. I include Turner and Cole because my husband and I do a lot of puppysitting so we spend a fair amount of time with them. Time spent with our dogs means lessons learned, and I have learned something from each of these special creatures.

Belle is a five year old tri-color beagle who is somewhat spoiled. No, let me re-phrase that, very spoiled. She came into our lives when she was about ten weeks old and very rapidly became our baby. When you ask my children who is their parents’ favorite child, they will reply in unison, “the dog!” Belle travels with us as often as she can and knows that going through a drive-through window means snacks! Her two favorites are McDonald’s and the bank!

Belle has taught me the importance of being well-rested. She can sleep anywhere! After her morning jaunt around the neighborhood, she is in need of a nap. Usually she lies behind the chair next to mine in the family room, but sometimes she hops up on the sofa. The heavy breathing starts a few minutes after she has settled down. The snoring begins not long after that. There’s almost always a late morning catnap followed by her afternoon siesta.

The problem with her sleeping is that Belle snores louder than any human! For her relatively small size, she puts out a big sound that has become progressively louder the older she gets. If Belle decides to take an afternoon nap upstairs in the bedroom, I can hear her snoring in the kitchen. One afternoon, I could not find her. I called and called to no avail. Then I listened, and sure enough I could hear that infamous snore! Snoring is a common sound at our house because Belle’s rest is essential to her good living.

Belle thinks that she is human and as such, she should sleep in a bed with humans. Whenever I’m interviewing a potential house-sitter, the first question is “how do you feel about sleeping with a snoring dog?” Those who answer “it’s no big deal” are usually hired! Because Belle sleeps with us every night –burrowed underneath the bedspread and sheets-I deal with the snoring on a regular basis. There have even been nights when the shaking of the bed from this little dog’s snoring has wakened me!

I have indeed learned from Belle how important good rest is, so I have resorted to sleeping with earplugs. It does help to deaden the sound and I usually sleep fairly well. I have also learned that napping when possible helps one to get through the busiest of days. So when I read about the essential eight hours of sleep for good health, all I can say is I’m trying!