Another Benefit Of Dogs

There are all kinds of reasons to have a dog. Unconditional love. Companionship. Something that feels good sensually when you stroke those silky ears. Warmth shared with a snuggle when it's cold. Teaching responsibility and empathy in caring for it. The wonderful stimulation of a tail beating when it's happy while sitting next to or on your lap. Someone to talk to when you are lonely or just need to talk but have your secrets kept. The list goes on, different benefits suiting individual dogs and your relationships.

I found a new one last night. Bedtime is always the time for that last outdoor duty stop. In this household it also means that middle of the might - or wee hours if you will - chance to head outside for a minute or two. When I wake up and nature calls, the dog assumes she gets the same benefits. She's right.

My oddball schedule lately has me up and about briefly at 2AM. In AZ that means just a quick stop at the patio door and a wait while she quickly goes out and returns. In the summer it's often near the coolest part of the day. In winter, it's immediately followed by a warming snuggle. But in Minnesota it brings additional benefits.

On those night where the wee hours hold cloudless skies, I can locate familiar constellations not seen for... well, it seems forever. Even those tremendous dark skies from our trip a year ago were too star studded to pick out more than one or two. Everything was too busy. These last weeks there have been both dippers, cassiopeia, and I'm pretty sure, bootes. Trees were in the way of part of it. Had I taken more time I'm sure I could have traced out draco as well. Even last summer the skies were obstructed most of the time by smoke from Canadian forest fires.

Last evening there was a lower, more ground based bonus. Fireflies! While I stood on the steps just before bed, with  enough light left to still make out the yard, two were flashing practically at my feet. Then I scanned the rest of the yard for about 5 minutes, and traced the paths of at least 6 more, though I will allow for the possibility that one or two did abrupt u turns and got counted twice. I can't remember watching them anywhere since my granddaughter was little and we had her over for a weekend or gone camping. I wouldn't have seen these if it weren't for the dog.

You can bet I'll be looking again tonight. Unless of course, the threatened rain returns. This morning it was still wet from an overnight storm and at 10:30, with the sun out for an hour, she still refused to go out and deal with the horrors of wet blades of grass (or violet leaves, dandelions, baby trees, whatever) across her nearly hairless tummy. 

Boy, there better not be a puddle in the house anywhere! That is NOT what I consider a benefit!