b'I wake up early and sit downstairs in the kitchen. I hear thepatter of eight paws, followed by Michael who makes a bee-line towards Raven. I watch with a cool demeanour. Ravenhas moved on from last nights awkwardness. I have not.Michael, pouring himself a coffee, throws out, You weresnoring last night.I was not! Okay, lets go with that.Youre confusing me with Raven. True, she does snore. Shes so cuteyou,not so much.Ellen 0, Rival(s) 2.Darwin watches and my eyes beseech him to side withme. He moans. I imagine his thought bubble, Mom andDad, who are these two amateurs?At 9:00 AM, its walk time and joyous chaos erupts. Ienjoy this, but my inexperience handling a leash is obvious,especially to the dogs. Michael handles Darwins strengthand enthusiasm for natures smorgasbord with ease. Darwinzigzags as far as the leash allows and Michaels natural coor-dination and years of athletics are helpful as he keeps paceand remains untangled. Theyre like dance partners as hetwirls effortlessly with the leash. Hes the Baryshnikov ofdogwalkers.Me?RememberElaineBenesdancinginSeinfeld?Off leash, we behold dogs being dogs. Darwin sprintsin graceful fluidity and Raven leaps over the bushes, seem-ingly in slow motion, with her long ears flowing. In mymind, I hear the orchestral score from the movie Chariotsof Fire.Raven trots at Michaels ankles and he looks smug.Its not about you, I observe coolly. What do you mean? She knows you have the treats. Its not you.He laughs, acknowledging the truth.Ellen 1, Rival(s) 2.But then again, he adds, she did snuggle with me thismorning while you tried to bribe her away with a treat.I did not!Jaccuse!Thats rich! You flaunt the Pouch of Power like yourea super hero. My world order is changing. Ellen 1, Rival(s) 3.Darwin barks at things that are a mystery to us. Perhapsa leaf rustled or a squirrel jumped to a new branch fourhouses over. Raven, showing solidarity, lifts her sleepy head,and with a slight delay, offers a low growl or a bark. Welaugh at her defense of the homestead because she has nointention of lifting a paw. Weembracetheeasy-goingdaysandourconfidenceincreases. Until Day 3. Were all on the deck, with Darwinscanning the horizon. A neighbours dog barks and he returnsthe greeting. And then jumps off and sprints away. Out ofsight.WerestartledbecausehisparentspromisedusPROMISEDthat this wouldnt happen.Continued, page 39 gwww.TheNewBarker.com THE NEW BARKER 37'