Welcome Home!

I recently had to do some traveling and was going to be away from home (away from Ray) for two weeks. While I was not too concerned about the reception I may get from Ray upon my return, there was a possibility that he may not be happy about me leaving him for two weeks.

Was I going to be greeted by a dog with a wagging tail, or by a dog who was clearly annoyed and possibly quite angry? I wanted to believe the former, but Ray had already displayed a capability to show displeasure when things didn’t go quite the way he expected. I could well envisage Ray getting very alert when either my cab pulled into the driveway, or at my first foot fall on our front porch. Given his history of “shoot first and ask questions later”, all sorts of possible receptions were on my mind while I was away!

I eventually suggested to Carol that, at around the time that I would be expected back, she open the front door. Ray would then hear the sounds of somebody approaching, but would be able to see me through the screen door. In contrast, and if the front door was closed, Ray could work himself up into his defense/attack mode such that as soon as the front door opened, he could be leaping through the opening before realizing who was entering the home!

While planning for this scenario (the inevitable showdown) was considered prudent, it turned out to be totally unnecessary. My cab driver stopped on the street outside our home and, while I was settling my account, I noticed Carol and Ray in our driveway. Ray was pre-occupied with socializing with Buddy, a dog he seems to like and who lives further down the street.

Buddy and his owner were leaving as I walked up our driveway. Ray came trotting over to me with tail wagging and  followed me very closely up the steps and onto our front porch. When we were in the house, I immediately sat on my bed, and had just started to open up my luggage when he jumped up. I was subjected to a forceful “nose to nose” butt and a brief face wash. I think I had my “Welcome home Dad”!

The next day, Ray seemed to clearly remember the day’s routines from two weeks earlier as he reminded me to have my toast in the morning*. We were back to normal!

See “Toast Anybody” – June 22, 2015

17 thoughts on “Welcome Home!”

  2. Dogs live in the moment generally and Ray saw an opportunity to see you. Ritual also plays a major role with their day to day interactions and sounds like everything went according to plan. Great that Buddy was there so Ray didn’t have to go into guardian mode but I’m sure he was genuinely glad to see you.

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  5. When Mom hears Dad’s car in the drive, she always says, “Daddy’s home!” and I can be in a deep and profound sleep, but will perk up immediately. Dogs love their Dads! Glad Ray gave you the face wash! Woof!

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  6. Since Kali and Ray seem to live somewhat parallel lives this is good news for me since I will be leaving Kali for almost a week later this month. I’ve never been apart from her for more than two days. In our case she will be staying with a friend so will not be with either Holly or I. I’m sure there will be a post of two about our experience away from each other upon my return….

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  8. Cats are a bit different. Some of mine are clearly glad to see me (more food, more food!) and some feel the need to discipline me for my disappearance. The typical discipline is to hide so that I worry or else to holler for hours. Gotta love them!

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  9. I know ‘they’ say dogs don’t have a sense of time, but I think they do, somewhat. Mine know a weekend day is different.
    I’m glad Ray had accepted your apology for leaving him for sooooo long! 😉

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  10. Glad your reception was good. When I went to NZ for 2 months, I thought Maggie would forget me, but no chance. She was all over me when I got home and wouldn’t leave my side for days! Of course unlike Ray, we had her from a puppy, but it just goes to show what perseverance, compassion and patience can do.

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