Tomorrow we are celebrating Smokey’s 10^th birthday. We don’t know his actual birth date but Kathryn picked this because it was around the time the vet said he was born and it is her birthday month too. That’s important when you are 6 and set the date.

During the recent blizzard, we had a serious discussion on how to celebrate this milestone, proving that pet owners are crazy AND being cooped up in the house can result in odd conversations.

It is hard to remember life before Smokey and in honor of his big day, I thought I would share 10 factoids about him.

1. Smokey is a proud graduate of Puppy Kindergarten and has a certificate to prove it. Sadly, he had to drop out of the 1^st grade because of his propensity to get car sick. He would get sick on the way there, fill up on treats during the training and then unload in the car on the way home. We decided to spare ourselves the trouble and home school him.
2. Smokey came from my friend Monique, who got him initially for her now mother in law. Unfortunately, he wasn’t exactly the type of dog that she wanted, so Monique was looking for a good home for him. We had always said that we wouldn’t get a dog until the cats we had passed away but those two cats were a hearty lot – living to be 18 and 19 respectively – so with no Rainbow Bridge in sight for them, we decided to go ahead and take the plunge.
   

   He was so small and cute!

3. When Monique got him, his name was Shadow. She renamed him Smokey. He will also answer to “Smoke”, “Smacky” or “Angel.” Sometimes when I come home and ask “Where’s my angel?” Kathryn gets mixed up and thinks I’m talking about her. When he went to day care while our kitchen was being redone, they gave him the nickname “Love Bug.”
4. The first night Smokey came here, he was so small and pitiful, he slept in our bed. He’s never left it.
5. Smokey is a good sport. Until just a few years ago, he always was dressed in a Halloween costume to complement Kathryn’s costume. We still put him in a variety of clothes which he tolerates.
   

   Everyone should be a blonde at least once!

6. Smokey has a few phobias – brooms, vacuums, beer bottles and laundry baskets. I still need to ask Mo about his early childhood.
7. Smokey does not appreciate musical instruments. He’s been known to wail while Kathryn practices her flute and just the sight of her mini-accordion, causes him to start to whimper until he erupts into a crescendo of howling when she starts playing.
8. Smokey is up for anything – naps, walks, eating or playing. He’s glad to spend a lazy day watching “Law and Order” and just as happy if you take him out for a long walk or a game of ball.
   

   He prefers running beside the sled than riding on it!

9. When we had the cats, they would sit on or under a bench we have in the living room and wait for him to walk by to smack or grab him. He finally stopped going near the bench and five years after both cats are gone, he still avoids the bench.

10. Smokey has a secret passion for whipped cream from the can. If he hears it being used, he runs from wherever he is for a taste. He’s also taken up stealing food from the table in his old age. 

Everyone thinks they have the greatest dog and they are right. Today I’m glad to honor our favorite four-legged family member. I used an online calculator to find out Smokey is roughly 65 in human years. 10 or 65, it is all the same to him – tomorrow will be a great day, with lots of love and maybe a little bit of whipped cream on top!