BUDDY'S FIRST BATH

Merci asks, "Don't we look pretty?" "But I smell like a girl!" Buddy protests after his first bath.

BUDDY’S FIRST BATH
Copyright 2005 Janice Price

“Ugh,” Buddy says to Merci, after his first bath, “it sure feels weird to be clean, doesn’t it?”

Merci laughs. “Yes, but it feels good for the moment. If Jan could only learn to bathe us without water, bath time wouldn’t be so bad.”

Buddy agrees. “I sure don’t understand why she had to spray us with water and use that sweet-scented dog shampoo on us. You don’t smell like a dog any more. I guess I don’t either.”

“I like the clean scent of the shampoo. It makes me feel like a pretty girl for a while.”

“Well, you are a girl. Of course you like sweet-scented shampoo. But I’m a guy. I like to smell ripe. Wonder what’s in it to make it smell so feminine?

“Aloe Vera and Jojoba Oil. Jan says jojoba is pronounced ho-ho-ba.”

“Ho-ho? So Jan thinks it’s funny to make me smell like a girl?” Buddy complains.

“Buddy, I have no doubt you won’t smell like a girl for long! In fact, if Jan hadn’t towel-dried you and rushed you inside, you would have rolled in the freshly-mown grass and been an absolute smelly mess. You’d be ripe, rank or whatever word you want to use.”

“You would have rolled in it too, Merci, and you know it. Don’t try to act so clean and dainty around me. I know you. You might be a girl but you’re still a dog. The only reason you ran to the front door instead of the freshly-mown grass when Jan finished --“ Buddy cocked his head and asked, “Why did you run for the front door?”

“The same reason you did. To get away from the hose. I don’t mind Jan giving me a bath. It’s the water I don’t like.”

“It was more like a shower. It would have felt good if the water had been warmer.” Buddy considers this statement for a moment. “But I still don’t like getting a bath. It isn’t manly. Or doggy. Well, whatever.”

Merci eyes Buddy and shakes her head. “Buddy, you didn’t act manly, doggy or even adult. You acted like a baby, crying and running away from the water, racing up the steps and trying to dive through the screen door.”

“It was my first bath. I didn’t know what to expect. You’ve had several baths and yet you fussed just as much as I did. You’re just acting cocky now that it’s over and you smell like a girl again. You were shaking like a leaf out there, begging Jan not to give you a bath.”

“Well, that’s true,” Merci admits reluctantly. “I guess we’re both just a couple of wimps when it comes to getting a bath. But it sure feels nice when Jan’s finished and we can lounge around getting everything in the house wet while we’re still damp.”

“Yeah, did you see the wet footprints we brought in with us? That was neat. And when we sat down, we left big wet blobs behind. We should do this more often, only without the water.”

“Yeah, the wet blobs are fun. The brushing afterward isn’t bad. And the treats are good.”

Buddy licks his lips at the mention of treats. “Jan took pictures of us while we were still damp. I wonder why? Perhaps she wants a picture to send her friends so they can see how handsome we look. I sure hope they can’t smell us in those pictures. I don’t want to get a reputation as a guy who wears perfume.”

Percy pokes his head into the room. “Hey, Jan’s looking for you. I think she wants you to take her for a walk before she leaves.”

“Thanks, Percy,” Merci says, rising to her feet and leaving a wet blob on the floor.

Percy enters the room. He wrinkles his nose and sniffs Buddy’s leg. “Are you wearing perfume? You smell like a girl.”

Buddy leaps to his feet, leaving a large wet blob behind, and starts for the front door. “Not for long. Come on, Merci.”

“What’s the hurry?” Percy asks.

“This is the perfect time to roll in the freshly-mown grass. I’m still damp,” Buddy calls over his shoulder. “Merci doesn’t mind smelling like a girl, but I can’t wait to smell like myself again.”

“Yeah, ripe,” Percy mumbles to himself. He lifts a front paw and sniffs. “Hmmm, I guess I can use a bath too. I better find a quiet corner and take a quick tongue bath before Jan decides to give me a wet one and I end up wearing Buddy’s perfume.”

Note to self (Merci) –Find Buddy a ripe shampoo on the Internet and order a gross.

Merci,
Have a good day.