There is no doubt that play is a positive part of life. It is a natural expression of who we are at a given moment, and the same is true for our dogs.
We all know how delightful it is to watch dogs at play, and often it is the dog in the family that lures us humans into silliness and laughter. And they love us no matter how goofy we act!
All animals play. No one really knows why, though there are many theories. Maybe it’s a disarming way to build social bonds. It may be that it helps build practical skills. One thing is certain: playing creates an emotional state of joy and happiness.
My dog Kuma, an Akita mix, recently turned 12. He’s still the perky charmer he was as a puppy, just a little slower. I decided to celebrate his life by giving him a birthday party; a special play date with four of his favorite doggie friends. It was a great day for the dogs and for me. I’ll let Kuma tell you all about it.
Kuma’s Happy Birthday Party
Boy, was my party fun! Four of my friends dropped by one day as a surprise. Thunder, a young German Shepherd, arrived with his tail up and his head high, the very essence of an alpha dog. He immediately watered my rose bush! Then Jake, another Shepherd with a quirky head tilt and a great sense of humor, strutted in. He marched over to the rosebush, snorted, and watered it in turn. Hey! I thought, That’s my rose bush. So I watered it, too.
In fact, the three of us were still playing water the rose bush when Morgie, a darling Dachshund, arrived with her nose to the ground, sniffing. She started running after something and we all ran after her, rushing around as if a big bowl of dog chow had just appeared. When my best friend, Hana, an Akita, bolted through the gate, we stopped our hunt and scrambled over to her. She had apparently rolled all over a nice smelly mound of moldy cheese. Boy, was she popular!
Thunder decided to break away from the rest of us and ran off, circling round and round, then took a leap into the air to catch the Frisbee my Mom had thrown. Hana stole the Frisbee from Thunder; it bounced off my head before plopping into the pool.
Mom served some really yummy treats, which of course brought out the chowhounds in us. We were all polite except for Jake, who slobbered all over my paw in anticipation of the tasty tidbits. A fire truck zoomed by at that very moment and the wail of its siren launched us into howling harmonies. Jake, Hana, and I sang real loud while Morgie and Thunder hid under the table.
After our singing fest, Mom brought out a big paper bone and let us rip it to shreds. Hey, there were more goodies hidden inside! My favorite stinky liver bits were a big hit with my friends. Hana was especially happy, grinning and swinging her whole body in tune with her sleek tail. Morgie disappeared for a minute and reappeared with toilet paper trailing behind her. We all pounced on the fluffy bits of soft paper and made a wonderful mess. My mom is great – she just laughed.
After scarfing down the liver cookies, Jake jumped into the pool to retrieve the Frisbee, them jumped out and proceeded to shake water all over Mom and Hana. They didn’t seem to mind.
I suddenly caught sight of a table placed at my eye level with some interesting-looking boxes on top. Mom said I could open them, and when I tore into the first box a hamburger squeaky toy fall out. My dog friends decided they wanted to get in on the fun and shredded the rest of the presents. Jake lucked out by finding a rubber steak.
Thunder invited Morgie to play tug-of-war with a big rope. Thunder won and sat down to chew on the end of it while I sat with two fuzzy tennis balls in my mouth. When they got nice and yucky, I shared one with Hana.
Finally, Mom brought out bark-a-licious beef and cheese “pup-cakes” for each of us. Needless to say, within seconds they were all gone.
What a paw-ty! When my friends left, I sauntered over to Mom for some good old petting. I sat down on her feet, happily exhausted, then rolled over and fell asleep.
What a great life, eh? Having fun is what we dogs live for, along with eating and hanging out with our human pack. I hope you do a lot of playing this summer!
Sloppy kisses to you,
Kuma
Christine Kenworthy is a psychologist who has extensively researched the role of play between dogs and their human companions. She has a private practice in San Mateo and just launched a unique doggie basket business, www.dawgdreams.com. You can reach her at drchristine@comcast.net or 650-737-1883.
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