The Rug Dog

Onyx loves rugs. I have throw rugs in a few locations in the house, and she is certain each one has been put there solely for her comfort. I have two in the kitchen: one in front of the sink, and one in front of the stove. These are the two places I stand most often in the kitchen. I have the rugs there as cushioning for my feet. But most of the time, I find myself scooting Onyx out of the way. She has done this since she was a puppy, I have several pictures of her through the years curled up on a rug in the kitchen. The rugs may change and she has gotten more gray, but she's still in the same pose.

If I'm in the kitchen making dinner, I may start out at the sink peeling vegetables or preparing the meat. While I'm at the sink, she moves to the rug in front of the oven and curls up with her paws tucked under her. When I move to the stove, I have to shoo her away so I don't step on her. Then she moves to the rug in front of the sink and lets out a sigh, like I am inconveniencing her. This dance gets repeated several times a night as I'm making dinner, because I am always moving between the stove and the sink. Some nights, Erich and I both work on dinner. On these nights, I hate to say it, she usually ends up stepped on. We don't mean to. But she gets right under foot. My kitchen is too small, and when you get two people and two dogs (because Cobalt has to be at our heels in case food is offered), you end up tripping over something or someone.

Whenever we have some form of beef or chicken for dinner, we always put a little aside for the dogs. If it's beef, they get one steak between them or about 1/4 pound of hamburger. When it's chicken, they split the smallest chicken breast. I set theirs on a plate to cool. Onyx stretches out on the rug in front of the sink to guard their share. After a few minutes, she issues a pathetic 'woof!' as if to say "Have you forgotten me?" This woof is repeated every 2-3 minutes until she has been fed.

When I pulled out the Christmas decorations last November, I found a pretty snowman throw rug in one of my tubs of decorations. I put it in the living room, just inside the front door. It was supposed to give us a place to put our boots or the shovel without getting the actual carpet wet. Now, in the beginning of August, the rug is still here. The reason it's still out is because Onyx has claimed it as her own. Big surprise. When our boots were on it, she would move them. She's a strong little dog. I've seen her move cement blocks with her front legs as if they were a pillow. Then she digs at the rug, and makes her nest. She digs and paws and moves it- sometimes she moves it into the middle of the room. When she's satisfied that it is just right, she flops down with a deep sigh and sleeps for hours. The rug is to the right of the desk that holds the laptop- which is where I do all my computing when I'm at home. I think she likes the rug because it has a nice plush to it, and she can be close to her pack. She curls up on it in the afternoons with Erich and in the evenings when I'm at the computer. It is really sweet. Of course, if you come to my house when she's not on the rug, you wonder why I have snowmen out in the middle of summer.

Cobalt seems to prefer the couches. They both have very nice dog beds, but he loves to snuggle on either of the couches. If he is feeling needy, he maneuvers under the desk and sits in front of my legs. I think that's his safe spot. Some nights, I have a dog under the desk and one on the rug next to me. Those are the best nights!