Biscuit and I are on our favorite perch…our window sill. We see the lake, the trees, and people like you running, walking, or riding their bikes. Inside, we are protected from loud skeet shooting, something that makes me want to run and hide. These sounds happen every Saturday between 10 am and 3 pm. You try to take us for walks before and after these times. Never during. 

If we forget and try to walk during that time, I dig in all four paws, with every bit of strength I have, and in no uncertain terms, make it clear I am not walking any direction except home. Some sounds make my skin hurt, my fur quiver, my heart race, and my legs shiver. Guns really hurt the pink shells of my ears. Other bad sounds are rollerblades, skateboards, and other strange, not-walking types of wheeled animals. What hurts Biscuit’s ears are fire engines and ambulances. When he hears them, he howls like a wolf. People think it’s funny, but I don’t laugh because I’m a dog and his mother was my sister. I know how he feels. When he howls, you open the door and let him inside. He is happy to get away from siren sounds. Thank you for helping me take care of him.

On our deck, which is outside, we feel the wind and listen to the birds. The birds from all around the southern continent are coming home to Minnesota now. Today we heard sandhill cranes. In Wisconsin, they settle down for the summer on our lakeshore. Sandhills rattle-ratttle-rattle like no other bird voice. It’s a good loud, not a bad loud.

When we’re free on the deck, we can bark hello to other dogs. If our hello turns into a fugue, you bring us back inside. Sometimes I go in and out, in and out, in and out. You don’t like opening and shutting the door. You understand my two-bark “Let me in!” Once I’m inside, I let you alone for awhile and then I come to find you with a stolen sock or shoe in my teeth which you and I both know means, “Let me out!” Biscuit can stay outside much longer than I can. He has the heaviest coat of any Beardie our groomer has ever seen. It keeps him very warm in inclement weather (Remember I have an extensive vocabulary). I think it makes him very hot in the summer too. Poor little Biscuit. We have to love who we are and how we were born. You help us with that.

The world as we feel it is usually very satisfying. In the morning, we fight over who gets the paper. We get a treat if we bring it in. Daddy takes us for our very first walk. We eat our breakfast. We go for a big long walk with you. Sometimes we see our friends like Tom or Johannes. You like them and they like us. Town has treats and Johannes says, “Hi, guys!” We might get more treats from you. You let us smell all around the bottoms of trees, the grass, park benches and sometimes people’s shoes and pant legs. We come in and take a nap after all our nose work. We follow you around the house. We take another walk. We have dinner. We take one last leg lift at our closest tree and we all go to bed. I let Biscuit take his position next to you, and when he’s not looking, I hop up. We are both very agile when we sail over your legs. Actually, I am graceful as a gazelle and Biscuit is more of a galoomph. Both styles are gorgeous. But you know that already.

Advice from Oliver: Sometimes we need to be outside where we can sniff trees and sometimes we feel safer inside. We’re our own expert feelers.