While in her kitchen Sonja’s cattle dog, Ben, suddenly “went bonkers!” 

“You know how a dog acts,” said Sonja, “when they pick up a nasty sticker, cactus spine or something that they can't get rid of it?  Well! Ben was insanely zooming around the room with his tail between his legs!”

He was favoring his left thigh, so she ran after him trying to stop him. Her plan was to investigate his leg by running her hands over it, but “He just would not stop”.

“I grabbed his leash and as he sped by me,” said Sonja, “I looped it around his neck, stopping him just long enough to run my fingers through his fur. Sure ‘nuff’ I found and brushed out a little lump.”

Used to Oregon sticker burrs, what she found explained Ben’s predicament, but now it became hers!

“Well,” continued Sonja, “that ‘lump’ turned out to be a very angry wasp! Only European Honey Bees leave it’s stinger in the skin, but other vespids like wasps, bumble bees, yellow jackets, and hornets can sting repeatedly with no harm to themselves. Poor Ben! A small grumpy wasp had stung him over and over.”

Then “that darn critter” took off after Sonja, stinging her three times through her jeans!

Sonja continues, “I got Ben and we ran ‘outta Dodge’, straight out the front door! Those stings really hurt, poor Ben . . . and me!

Then, we cautiously walked around to the back door, into the laundry room, where I gave Ben his doggy sting medicine, before l quietly sneaked into the bathroom to find a "Sting Stick" for me.

After we were fixed up, it was time to strap on the guns and go after that !!@&^^$@!!! wasp!  I was hoping that the crazed insect had headed into the living room, where all flying things go to bonk themselves against the window.

Usually, I gently place a clear cup over an ‘inside’ insect, and slip a piece of stiff paper between the cup and window, before righting the cup, using the paper as a lid and carry the innocent insect outside to let them free. Not this time!

I hauled out the heavy guns! I chose my largest fly swatter and swatted that bug to death, several times for both Ben and me. It was sheer unadulterated revenge!  Imagine that wasp stinging my innocent dog! I hope that mean wasp is in insect hell populated by giant spiders and praying mantises the size of Tyrannosaurus Rex's!”

I wish I knew why that thing went after Ben. The dog wasn’t doing anything, but joyfully following me as I was unloading the car. But, gratefully, we will never know as the wasp can't talk because it is in insect hell.”

“Dog breed’s skills are so different!” said Sonja, “My ex-Marine friend’s service lab, Sarge, retrieves his food dish to get his chow.  Sarge holds the dish up while Joe puts in the kibble, then Sarge carefully sets it down and begins eating.  Once the dish is empty, Sarge picks up the bowl and carries it over to the sink.  Unlike most untrainable human relatives, Sarge then drops the dish in the sink for washing!

Once in a while I tell Ben, "FIND YOUR  DISH".  When I do this, he looks at me as if I am a teensy-weensy dim, then he runs over and whaps his dish, hard, with a fore-paw, sending it banging across the room! He cracks me up!

I also keep an umbrella at each outside door, so when I head out on a rainy day I have an umbrella on hand.

When a foster dog arrives, I teach them about umbrellas. Most rescues are scared of the mysterious contraptions. To disarm their fears, I open an umbrella, put it upside down, and place several kibbles in it.

This has accidentally interfered with my lesson, ‘Find your dish’.

I once sent a new dog to the kitchen with the cue, ‘Find your dish’. Drum roll! She came back dragging my umbrella! At least, she knew where the kibble can be found!”

“I loved reading the Tips ‘n’ Tales article, ‘Hats off to the Dogs’.” said Sonja, “So I ordered a matching red, white and blue hat for myself and Ben for when we visit veterans at the VA hospital. The hats will make everyone smile! It is a wonderful experience ‘sharing’ your dog with others in hospitals. Dogs love to be petted and hugged and so do people!”

Ben is passionate about squirrels. Every time he spots one, from their living room window, he barks at it, then spins off the couch, and charges out his dog-door to try and get it.  SCORE: Ben=0    Squirrels=3,926.

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