Posted on: Sunday, June 12, 2005

OHANA
Dogs are like kids ... except when they aren't

By Ka'ohua Lucas

I heard it early that morning — a low growl.

No barking.

Just a rumble in the throat.

Then it stopped abruptly.

A scuffle in the carport ensued.

The sound of sneakers, attempting to travel across the asphalt floor.

Their progress delayed.

Claws scraping against the lanai.

All of a sudden there was a thud against my front door.

A human yelp.

Bleary-eyed, I stumbled into the kitchen.

The wooden door shuddered.

It was as if sandbags were being rammed up against the wooden structure one by one.

The doorknob began shaking violently.

"No, no! Down!" I heard a feeble voice command.

I ran over to rescue her.

As I flung open the door, my friend was trying to fend off our three dogs as they tried to lick her and leap up on her tiny frame.

"Come on, boys and girl. Outside!" I ordered.

The three ignored me and burst into the house, their claws digging into our "distressed" wooden floors.

Their tails flipped back and forth like windshield wipers at high speed.

The smallest of the three held a tattered piece of discarded plastic wrap in his mouth — a present for his master.

"OK, let's get you a treat," I said.

I dug into a box filled with doggie bones and handed one to each of them.

Contented, they turned and scurried off to their favorite spot in the yard where they were able to gobble it up.

We have had dogs ever since we moved into our house.

The older of the two, 'Eleu, is the mo'i wahine or queen. She reigns over the two recently acquired pups.

She glares at the two boys in disgust when they attempt to engage her in a wrestling match.

The larger of the two, Koa, is the most submissive.

When my husband leans over to pet him, he rolls over on his back, a fountain of pee barely missing his master.

Kupono, perhaps the more dominant male, is like a snapping turtle, constantly gnashing his teeth.

His personality is such that he foists himself on us when he believes one of the other two dogs is receiving more attention than he.

What I find fascinating is that our dogs are a lot like our children.

They demand our attention.

Eating is a priority.

Sleeping an absolute.

They prefer wrestling as opposed to a game of run-and-fetch.

And our boys' frames, like those of our dogs, can be deceiving.

Just their build alone will make the most aggressive solicitor turn on his heels.

As my husband says, "Our dogs are just like our children, with one exception: the dogs poop all over the yard."

Reach Ka'ohua Lucas at Family Matters, 'Ohana page, The Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802; fax 525-8055; or at ohana@honoluluadvertiser.com.