En baver des ronds de chapeau

Exp. – have a tough time of it
The trainer used this expression about the dog and I see what he meant. While I tried to get a better handle of the expression by looking it up, I couldn’t really find a satisfactory explanation of its orgins, but because “baver” is the verb for drool and “ronds de chapeau” is the noun for hat brim, it makes sense that this would be a difficult thing to do – unless you’re standing upside down, which is what it feels like sometimes when training a pooch.

We human adults take so many things for granted. But when I now take Felix for his walks, I realize how many perils lurk outside. The streets are filled with trash, even in our pristine neighborhood. I really don’t know why it’s so hard to reach one’s arm out and throw something in the many trash bags that line the street. I remember once in New York when I was in the subway, I watched a woman drop her metro card on the ground. I called after her because I genuinely thought she dropped it by mistake, but she gave me a look to say “I don’t need it anymore.” My jaw sort of dropped unconsciously as I looked a foot past her where there was a trash can. She got the message, picked up the card and threw it away.

I watched a woman here the other day open up her packet of cigarettes as she crossed the street and just drop the plastic wrapping on the ground. That plastic wrapping is not only litter, but now a possible choking hazard for my dog. I’m constantly pulling wads of paper, cigarette butts, metro tickets, you name it, out of the dog’s mouth. He also loves leaves and pigeon feathers. I sometimes feel I’m walking a dustbuster.

As I’ve mentioned before, the French love their dogs, but apparently they don’t love cleaning up after them so much. This leaves another obstacle to navigate, which I was always cautious of before, but now I have the added concern of my dog’s open mouth ready to ingest anything he sees.

Felix is happy to have the attention of anyone, man, woman, child, fellow dog. Total strangers want to take his picture and hold him. Today while we were walking, a woman stopped to tell me how adorable he is. She went on to tell me about her dog that had died. When I asked if the dog was old, she explained that she had actually eaten something that killed her and started to cry. It broke my heart to see such profound sadness in her eyes. I told her she should get another dog to which she replied that she was too old. That broke my heart even more. She wished me all the best with Felix and I tried to take comfort in the fact that maybe for just a few moments he gave her some happiness, but her sadness lingers with me as I write this.

Just as it’s readily apparent when people love dogs, it’s equally so when they do not. I always wonder what goes through the minds of people who glare in disgust at my little innocent ball of fur. I wonder how unhappy they must be to look at something that makes most people’s heart melt with such contempt. What amuses me the most though is the expression on Felix’s face as they march past him as if to say “Wait, don’t you think I’m cute – what’s wrong with you?”

My dog is napping now – a time when the world goes quiet and I can tend to things that need to be done. Sometimes he dreams and according to the trainer, only predators dream because they feel safe when they’re sleeping. Sometimes I feel like napping, too because when the little whirling dervish of energy comes alive, I need to be fortified. Another thing the trainer explained to me is the role of the alpha male (or female in my case). He said that when puppies get too unruly, the alpha will simply turn away from them or even turn their back on them completely. Another trick they use is to yawn signifying that they’re bored with the behaviour. But after dealing with a puppy at play, I actually believe the alphas yawn because they’re just really tired!