One of the things I was most looking forward to, when I opened this shop, was bringing the hounds to Houndstooth. So far, we've had two of the four at the store with mixed results. Dylan is acting almost exactly the way I wanted —and expected! — him to. He *loves* people, and has greeted customers at the door almost every time they've walked in.
Then there's Heidi.
Years ago, I would drive from Vermont to Michigan each November to spend Thanksgiving with my parents. My two greyhounds would hang out in the back seat of my Saturn, and as I passed through Customs, I'd hand over two sets of rabies certificates. "Um, why two?" I was asked almost every time. "There's only one dog back there." Yep, because Katie would be sitting *on top* of Ellie, hiding her from view. Clearly Ellie didn't mind -- she didn't make a peep the whole drive — and it was ALL ABOUT KATIE anyhow; we all knew that.
Fast forward to present day, and I have Ellie 2.0 sitting comfortably on the Houndstooth couch. I've lost track of how many people have said, incredulously, "there's a second dog here?!" Yep, and while she's happy to see you...she sees no reason to get up and welcome you to the store. That's Dylan's job!
So, welcome. Come on in! And if you spot the lazy old lady napping on the couch at the back of the store, well, she *might* open her eyes to encourage a quiet "hello" or ear scratch. But she might sleep through your entire visit as well...
[This post originally ran in November of 2019]