Say it isn't So

Our Sophie has a problem. I am afraid it will start to affect her self esteem if we don't do something about it. Can't you tell by this picture how concerned she is?

See, in the winter Sophie refuses to go down the stairs out to the yard. We have this obnoxious cast iron spiral staircase that the previous owners thought was a great idea to put in. Clearly they did not have pets, kids, or a sense of style, but I digress….. So she just goes out on the deck and does her business out there. Yes, it grosses me out, but what can I do? In previous years she would go down the stairs as long as they were cleared off, but this year she flat out refuses. It seems her neurosis about things are getting worse, lucky us.  Apparently, a few months of no exercise leads to an obese dog.

You have heard about Sophie's ass on fire dance. Well, she also has an ass on fire run. She will do laps around the yard at full speed for no reason at all. It is like she channels her inner greyhound. It is truly hilarious to watch and I am guessing it was the key to her trim figure.

So what to do? I thought about having a chat with her, but she is deaf and I don't think I know enough sign language to get my point across. I mean, I know she doesn't want to look like a sausage on legs, but is she willing to do the work to get the weight off?  I am hoping once it warms up a bit she will be more willing to use the stairs and won't make me have to let her out thru the garage every time she need to go outside- because, well… that sounds like a lot of work.

We could try the treadmill… or I could take her for walks. Nothing like walking the neighborhood with a stroller, a deaf neurotic Boxer, carrying a bag of poo…..

Maybe I can convince Matt that we need a new deck and we can put a ramp in for Sophie…. Ok, that makes me giggle just thinking about it.