Kousin Kare

By Kooper Dash

Early Thursday morning I helped momma pack up our vehicle as we were heading to my cousins’ house for the weekend. Auntie and her friends were going on a getaway. She left momma and I in charge of her fur babies and her house. Slumber Pawty Time!!! We drove to Duluth and momma dropped me off while she went to the clinic to take care of people’s boo boos.

After clinic she returned to let Holly, Helen and myself outside to go potty, feed all of us including Gracie and let us play for a while. We were all super excited to see her. Gracie met her at the door, I was hanging out in the puppy retreat and Holly and Helen were in their kennels. Speaking of kennels, poor Holly’s kennel door was not functioning well and momma had to bust the front of the kennel off and have Holly climb out! We all felt bad for Holly but she was so patient and listened well. All of us went potty rather quickly as it was raining and we were all very hungry. Each of us returned one by one to enter the paw wiping station by momma!

Then it was time for lunch. We all sat in our respective spots and waited patiently. Gracie was fed first. Then Holly, Helen and I each received our meal.

Next, it was play time! Holly and I had a lot of fun playing inside. We played with the monkey and Kong toy a lot. Holly kept dropping balls for momma to throw but then she realized that I was more fun to play with! Helen sat with momma on the chair and watched us, although I really think she was sleeping. Holly would drop a ball on Helen’s head every once in awhile and that would wake her up! Poor Helen! After an hour of play time it was potty time again.

This potty time was even quicker for all of us because it was pouring out. Once again, paw wiping by momma before entering the house! Holly and Helen went back into their kennels. Momma was able to fix Holly’s kennel. Momma and I had to leave for more work at South Ridge High School to help the athletes. I felt bad leaving my cousins for a little bit but I love going to the school with momma so she let me go.

Momma and I returned back later that evening after we helped the South Ridge girl’s basketball team beat Cromwell by one point! Way to go Panthers! Holly and Helen were so happy to see me, I think at least! We all went outside and then momma gave us all a small late dinner. Gracie got fed again first. Then the rest of us. More play time was in our future so we were all excited about that.

We played for a bit then it was time for bed because we were all tired and it was past our bedtime. Helen and I slept with momma in the guest room and Holly slept in the master room by herself. Helen likes to sleep in the same spot I do…curled up next to the pillow. I shared nicely with her though. Holly liked to check on us during the night. Around 4am, Holly decided to join us in bed. It was quite cozy as my momma would say!

Morning came and that meant potty and breakfast! We followed our routines for both activities and then the three of us helped momma get ready for work. We are all such good helpers! When it was time for momma to go to the clinic we listened well and went to our spots. Helen needed a little encouragement but she did very well. Momma said she would be back after clinic and we could play, play, play! During the day, my cousins and I all napped and waited until momma returned. I knew she would be back as she always comes back. When we heard momma walk in the house we all started wagging our tails a lot. Mine was hitting the pantry cupboards and Holly and Helen’s tails were hitting their kennels. We were all whining, moaning and soft barking in excitement and Gracie joined in with her purring. We were just welcoming momma home with a nice musical song of excitement!

Back to our potty and meal routine then lots of time for play! My cousins and I have so much fun together. Momma enjoys watching us play separately and together. We make up so many fun games and keep momma entertained. Momma decided to lay on the couch and watch tv so we all decided it would be fun to join her. I’m not sure that was part of her plan but we thought it was a good idea!

Once it was bedtime we did our nightly routines except tonight Holly decided she was going to sleep with us! She found one small area to lay and she fell asleep hard! Momma let her sleep there for awhile. Eventually Holly woke up and decided that having her own bed in the other room was worth it! Everyone slept nicely until about 4am again. Morning routines happened and we helped momma get ready for the day. Then we all were tired and took naps in the family room! Once we were all rested it was time to get our chores done. We picked up our toys, checked on Gracie’s litter box, got all our laundry together, did dishes and cleaned the kitchen and our favorite one was picking up poop. We all would show momma where to go. What a fun game!

Next it was time for lunch. We all followed our meal routine and enjoyed some yummy lunch. Then it was time for my momma and I to run some errands in Duluth. We gave our kisses and see ya laters to each other and headed out. I was so sad to leave but also very tired and crashed in momma’s vehicle. Holly and Helen rested in their kennels while they waited for their momma to return from her adventure. I am sure that auntie had a great time with her friends but I know that I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with my cousins. I can’t wait to see them again soon.

Until next time, eat lots of treats, play often and give lots of kisses!

Kooper Dash