April 21, 2010

White Dog has always left a dusting of white over the entire house this time of year as she sheds her winter coat. This year, however, we have discovered that two Eskies do not equal merely twice the hair...it is more of a geometric progression, in the order of 10 squared or 100 times as much! As Quinn joins his sister in "blowing coat" the red of the oriental carpet is invisible and dust no longer forms cute bunnies but big shifting tumbleweeds that lurk under furniture and don't even bother to hide on bare surfaces. The vacuum is pushed to its limits and fills about halfway through the house. We have strategically placed grooming tools throughout the house so that we can randomly grab the Original White Dog or the Other White Dog and curry out a handful or two of hair that will go directly into the trash instead of on the furniture or our clothes first. They both seem to appreciate the brushing (I would think the molting process is a bit itchy). There are no signs of this phenomenon slowing, either. Last Sunday, as we dined al fresco with the pups, Steve was petting Quinn until he realized he was sending tufts of white fur floating in the breeze onto the woman sitting behind us! When White Dog poses prettily and strangers pet her in public, she always enjoys a belly laugh when we are asked, "Do they shed much?"