Dear Mama,
Grandma says I must write you a letter but I’ve been so busy I can hardly catch my breath. She said if maybe I stopped barking for a minute I would have time! I don’t know what it is about being on the Cape, but for some reason, I love to bark and bark and bark…usually for no reason except that it feels so good! Sometimes I like to lie all alone in the back yard and just bark…not a loud bark…just a steady low bark. Phillip thinks I am crazy because he only barks when there is an intruder or another dog barking.
The big thing I have to tell you is that we’ve had these really huge dogs visiting the past two weekends…I mean REALLY BIG! Two are called Bernese Mountain Dogs (and believe me, Mama, they are as big as mountains!) and the other one was a giant chocolate Lab called Bucky. Bucky was too crazy even for me! This weekend the two Bernese (Canon and Caius) came back with a HUGE Greyhound named Whoopee. She was so beautiful and graceful…Grandma said she had “runway legs,” whatever that means. I have never seen anything in my life run so fast. Daphne, Phillip, and I tried to keep up with her when we chased the ball but she was a blur. So, here is my question for you…when will I get that big? I never minded being the smallest dog, but now I want those long, skinny legs and that long pointed nose just like Whoopee. She raced on a track and was abused…at least that is what Grandma and her other daughter talked about…until she was rescued by her present owners. They love her so much that they cook her special meals every day, buy her clothes for every season, and do everything for her. I was kind of jealous but she is so nice and sweet I couldn’t be. I tried really hard to keep up with her but I wasn’t even close. Even Daphne couldn’t and she is the fastest dog I know!
At any rate, we are pretty tired most of the days from barking, playing, chasing Daphne, going for walks, going up and down the stairs, so that by bedtime we are done (as Grandma says). Camp is great and now that the weather is cooler, we are really happy. Leaves are already falling here because of the drought this summer so that every time we go out, the ground makes a crunchy sound. Miss you so much and can hardly wait to see you, but I am having a great time.
Love,
Maisie
I attached a portrait of us on National Dog Day.
A Pug’s Voice – The Next Generation 
Dear Maisie,
I totally get the barking thing, I mean, I do it all the time. Sometimes my Mom and Dad say I chirp…I don’t know what that means but you know, there is always something to say about any given circumstance so… I save my loud barking for actual intruders and backyard fantoms. If it’s really serious I will punctuate each bark with a forward pounce. This usually scares away the naughty neighborhood birds and sometimes the fantoms too!
I’m a bit older than you so I’ll try to put this to you gently…you are as big as you’ll ever be. Just know that to your Mommy, your Grandma and Grandpa and to all that love you, you are the biggest dog in the world…at least that’s what my Dad tells me! Also, backyard fantoms have very poor vision so they will see you as being YUGE! The fast running thing is over-rated, trust me.
I hope you have a great time at camp. Maybe one day you can come and stay with us at Camp Pupstar!
All our best (cookies, chicken and chew sticks),
Roxy (with Bono and Blue too)
Thanks, Roxy…you make me feel a lot better. I kept looking up at Whoopee like I look at skyscrapers in NYC and wondering why I am still such a peanut. The barking is new but it sure fills my days here. I don’t think Mama will like it in her high rise apartment when we return! Thanks for writing and comforting me…
Oh sweet little Maisie,
I think you and my Coco are indeed “sisters from another mister!” She, too, loves to hear herself bark, both at nothing and at everything! I’m sure the two of you girls would get along fabulously!
Thanks for the stories about your new big friends! And the picture of the four of you guys couldn’t be cuter!
~Erin (Chloe, Coco, Lulu and Maddie’s mommy)
Thanks so much for writing, Erin…so nice to hear that Coco likes the same outdoor activity! It is satisfying, empowering, and relaxing…all at the same time. Thanks for reading!
BOL!! I love to BARK!!
Timber