Life on the Leash

From the “This Wouldn’t Happen in Northern Virginia” file … I opened my business bank account at a small independent bank around the corner, and the teller actually offered to walk to my store to pick up deposits if I didn’t have the time to do it.

For reals.

Better yet, I got to chatting with the teller as we opened my account (It’s hard not to ask questions about a store called “Life on the Leash”) and she mentioned that the regional president of the bank is a huge dog lover.

A few days later, I was training that regional president’s dog.

Meet Jake, the 4 year old English Bulldog:

Jake went through training when he was younger, but Jake’s person told me that the obedience program didn’t sit well with her. The jerking, the choking … her gut told her it was wrong for Jake.

It didn’t take Jake long to figure out that this round of training was going to be very different.

“Treats? Fun? Games? I’m in!”

My new best friends are Tony the UPS guy, and Steve the Fed Ex guy.

Box-a-palooza.

Every package is like Christmas. “Oooh – look at the star collars! Wow, these leather leashes are like buttah!”

Things are moving along … but can we be ready by our proposed 6/20 “soft” opening? TBD.

Did you notice that I was gone for about a week? Yeah, me too.

Thanks, technology.

So. So. SO annoying.

Hopefully we’re back in biz now.

Ok, where were we?

The store! Last week I mentioned all of the ordering I was doing, and today I’d like to talk about a happy side-effect of it.

Freebies!

The grossest freebie thus far is also Sum’s favorite.

A frickin’ deer foot:

Sum used to love to chew bones, but he’s turned his nose up at nearly every bone I’ve offered for the past few years. That is, until the frickin’ deer foot showed up. He found the box of samples on the floor, buried his nose in it and whined.

I was hesitant to hand it over – it looks like it belongs in a zombie movie, what with the fleshy part above the hoof – but his prancing and lip smacking made me give in.

Oh, did he love it.

He carries it from room to room, even if he doesn’t opt to chew it. He just wants to know that it’s near.

I thought I’d seen every bone and chew out there (ears, tails, penii, trachea, antlers, etc.), but this one was new to me. Will LOTL carry it?

Sum votes “yes.”

Long days. Longer nights. Little sleep.

But you know what? I love it.

I’m in the buying phase right now … I guess I’m living every shopaholic dog lover’s dream right now. “Bejeweled dog collars? Why yes, thank you, I’ll take six!” (No, I’m not actually ordering sparkly dog collars. Cool collars? Yup. Glitzy? Ok, maybe one or two.) It feels like I’m buying tons, but I won’t know for sure until I can spread it out in the store.

We brought Sum to the store today. Yeah, not a fan. Tom was putting shelving together, so between the banging and the unfamiliar environment, he was a mess. I brought this bed, and folded the paper on the door up so that he could see outside, but after a quick glance, he wasn’t having it.

He’s never going to be a true shop dog, but I’m hoping that he can learn to be comfortable hanging out in the back during the day.