My dog is a cheese hound, though chicken attracts her
But show her a tennis ball, nothing distracts her.
She’s partial to cuddles, and happy to nuzzle,
Likes having her ears scratched and strokes on her muzzle,
But soon as the mystical ball is in play
Obsession takes over the rest of her day.
There is but one focus, one point of attention,
Two eyes quite determined, no chance of abstention.
One furry paw raised like a typical setter,
She shares her excitement (you’d think she’d know better)
Her neck is extended, her tail like a compass,
If you take too long she’ll start making a rumpus.
Eyes flick back and forth betwixt you and the ball
As if nothing else matters in her world at all.
She has many balls in the house at this juncture,
Some new ones, some chewed and the one with a puncture,
There’s green ones, but mostly they’re luminous yellow
And heaven forfend should you throw the wrong fellow!
She’ll just sit and look at you full of reproaches
And watch your discomforture as guilt approaches…
You’ve done with explaining they all look the same,
Identification is part of her game.
She doesn’t quite get it that your paltry senses
Mean any old ball can get past your defences;
You can’t make the right choice and she gets frustrated
You’ve throw every one and she’s waited and waited…
Then goes straight towards the correct ball at once
While you feel confused and a bit of a dunce,
For to her the right ball shines as bright as the sun…
Though so many she has… there can be only one.
P.S. You can buy Ani’s books on Amazon worldwide, in paperback and for Kindle, and help her purchase the automatic tennis ball launcher of her dreams: Laughter Lines: Life from the Tail End, is a collection of amusing verse and in Notes From a Small Dog; Four Legs on Two Ani offers her own unique view of the world and the vagaries of its human inhabitants.
Sue Vincent's Daily Echo 
Love it! Ok, I’m off to peruse Ani’s books. 🙂
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🙂
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I wonder what the magic of tennis ball is. Do the imbue them with some kind of spell at the tennis ball factory?
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They must have something in them! It tickles me how she adopts just one of them… no other will do until that is gone… then she mourns for half a day before choosing another.
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Excellent
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really quite envious of your relationship with Ani, the only animal I see these days is the one that vanishes when your mood lifts…
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It’s hilarious that she has a favorite. Quite the character she is!
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If it gets lost, she cries and won’t choose another until all hope is gone…
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🙂 Who says animals don’t form attachments?
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Not me 🙂
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What fun living with such a character! I wonder if you could change her choice if you rubbed one with cheese!
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I don’t know what the criteria is, but throw a whole tub of balls for her and she unerringly and instantly only retrieves The One.
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Love it… 🙂
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🙂
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Lovely dog! Helping with a spot of gardening too, I see 😊
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Thank you 🙂 She likes to carry her tennis balls in the pot and shakes them to make them fly off in random directions 🙂
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I can just picture Ani being patient with you. 🙂 — Suzanne
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I believe I am a sore trial to her 😉
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I can’t believe you don’t know the ‘right’ ball…I mean come on!!
Excellent piece, Sue, really enjoyed it.
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Out of a dozen or so identical balls, I admit that I occasionally fail 😉
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Oh to be human… 😉
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Ani appears to be laughing hysterically at that… 😉
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She’s a doll!
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She is 🙂
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