Pups Terrorize Old Ladies
It had been a beautiful day. I carried tiny Rosa, put Jasper on his leash then we headed out for walk. On the way home I took a side road. Suddenly two elderly ladies came screaming across their yard. "It's got rabies, get into the car." One of them tripped, the other fell over her, both were terrified. Getting up, they grabbed me, hustling me right along with them. Their car wasn't locked. Both my dogs and I got shoved into it, while they hastily scrambled into the front seat.
What on earth was going on? They said they had seen a yellow colored dog frothing at the mouth, running right at them. He wasn't acting right. They had returned from a drive but dropped the house key so ran to the car. They were convinced the dog had rabies. I was very concerned. While sitting there, the dog came around the corner of the house. The screaming in the car went up at least 100 decibels.
The animal was indeed frothing at the mouth. Gobs of white slobbery foam. He stopped, sliding his face on the lawn, first one side then the other. He didn't look anything like Cujo to me, but then I'd never seen a dog with rabies before. Another dog showed up. He looked as if he had been into some shaving foam. I could see that both were just big pups, bumbling along falling over their own feet. Something just didn't add up. The two started a wrestling match, the foam seemed to have lessened off. I told the ladies I was going to check things out. The squealing that brought on hurt my ears.
I slid around the back of the house wanting to see where the pups had come from. There was a bag of garbage, strewn around. I took a look, found something that made me laugh out loud. Picking it up I walked over to the two pups. The ladies saw me, they were still trying to damage their vocal chords. The owner of the pups came dashing down the road. By this time, the foaming had slowed to mere drooling.
The pups were so happy to see her. In seconds her jeans and shoes were covered in doggy drool. I showed her what the dogs had eaten. No harm was done, except for frightening two old ladies. The dogs owner wanted to approach the car to apologize, however every time she and the pups went near the vehicle the ladies tried to hide under the dash. They didn't fit, but it muted the hollering.
The pups were led home. The gals in the car were each holding one of my dogs. They had worked themselves into having a good cry. Having a long howl is supposed to be healthy. When I opened the door I had to pry my dogs out of their arms. Both Jasper and Rosa looked a bit stunned. If they had any hearing left it would be a miracle.
The pups were harmless. They had managed to get out of their yard, found a bag of garbage, snuffled through it. Finding a handful of Alka Seltzer tablets they tried sampling them. The second moisture hits those tablets,they foam like mad. The ladies had a hard time understanding why anyone would make a pill that foamed. Chemistry was never a strong point in school. I did remember that Alka Seltzer contains citric acid and sodium bicarbonate or baking soda. Add moisture, the result is fizzing. It's still uses as a bubbly medication for upset stomachs.
Jasper and Rosa were eager to leave the scene. Once I was out of the sight of the women, I sank to the grass, holding my sides laughing. It brought back a memory from my childhood. My brother and I had stolen a huge bottle of Alka Seltzer tablets from our house, then dumped the entire bottle into a neighbors pig pen. It was hilarious. We hid up in the branches of a huge oak tree. We did get caught and punished. It was worth it. It's still funny today. Somehow I don't think those elderly ladies would find any humor at all, in thinking that Cujo was on their trail.
