With the trip to Vegas approaching, we took Tock back to board at Celtic Acres Farm for ten days.
I have such mixed feelings after abandoning him there for such a long time, but strangely they were not the feelings I'd expected.
I didn't feel relieved to be released from Tock's demanding exercise regime and explosive diarrhea. I also didn't feel guilty for abandoning him. I felt something totally and utterly unexpected. As we released Tock into a huge outdoor farm pen, he was greeted by howls of delight from his former breeding partners, and I felt guilty because I knew that in ten days time we would be coming back to take him away from them again.
We would take the big stud back to a place where he was just another small dog in a big city.
I can still hear the yelps of happiness from the other huskies when they saw Tock. And Hank put it all in perspective when he said, "of course Tock is happy in there, he's with his bitches!"
A day later I find myself wondering: does Tock miss his DC home? Does he dream about his blanket and pillow, his red spotty bowl, his doggy back pack, RFK stadium and the Washington monument? Does he remember Kosmo and can he even recall the squirrels we chased in Stanton Park? In his happy tail-waggy world, does Tock ever spare a thought for his adoptive parents?
Somehow, I doubt it.
It was hard enough to leave the dog. It will be harder still to bring him home again.
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