Elevator Dog

 This photo of Olivia was taken somewhere around 2010 or 11. Here she is guarding the elevator door, which opened into our condo. We took Olivia to dog training when she was a puppy because she was a hard for me to manage. She was physically strong and pigheaded, always curious, regularly pulling me down when I tried to walk her and she had something else in mind. The ladies who were helping us with training who had been trained by the famous dog whisperer, Cesar Milan, said she was the second smartest dog they ever met. Agility training was a breeze for her. Eventually, they recommended a gentle leader, that extra little leash around her nose, which she wore her entire life so that I could manage her on a walk. 

But there was no gentle leader to help us manage how clever she was. Take this innocent looking photo here. When we were gone, Olivia used to jump up and tap the button on the elevator keypad and then ride the elevator up and down to the shock of the neighbors, who found no humor in the fact that our 60 pound yellow lab could navigate the Otis elevator keypad and hang out in the foyer when we were gone. Or be sitting in the elevator, and greet them when they opened the elevator door to their unit.  We used to think it was kind of funny, getting cryptic texts from the neighbor,"Your dog escaped again." Or finding her in the garage roaming around when we pulled in.  Eventually we had to put a protective case around the elevator buttons so she couldn't tap the up and down arrows and greet the neighbors unannounced.  

I miss that stubborn, quirky dog who would be laying by my side right now and glancing up every time I moved.  

I probably always will 🐾💔🐾