Today is Millie’s birthday. April 1. But she’s no fool. She’s four and getting smarter (and wiser—there’s a difference) by the year.
Julee and I had planned to have a little party for her with her many friends (Winky, Ollie, Max, Hank, et. al.) at the Chelsea Waterside Dog Run, maybe shoot some video and put it up on the site as we’ve done before but the weather derailed my plans. It’s raw and wet here in New York today (though Millie doesn’t mind this weather; it’s heat that gets to her) so the party will have to be delayed. Maybe Sunday.
But that begs the question, as it were. Why should dogs have birthday parties? They certainly don’t know what day they were born. They don’t wake up thinking, Hey, I’m seven years older today in human years. Actually, that calculation is not always accurate. According to various sites I’ve consulted (onlineconversion.com/dogyears, snopes.com), Millie is between 27 and 32 by human reckoning. Meanwhile I am the equivalent of a 10-year-old dog. I’ve had some 10-year-old dogs in my time and that’s a little frightening (though I do tend to groan these days when I lie down).
Back to the dog birthday thing. Obviously we humans are superimposing our own traditions and experience onto the canine species. But that’s not so terrible. Who doesn’t love a party more than a dog? Food, friends, games, maybe a little romance. We’re not all that different from them.
But no, Millie does not know that four years ago she was born in Tampa, Florida. Her parents were Maggie (a Georgia Peach) and Petey (all the way from Holland), and this was Maggie’s last litter. Originally her name was Dark Pink Girl (the name corresponded with the color of her collar that differentiated her from her sister, Light Pink Girl). Anyway, there was never any doubt who Julee and I wanted. She was the most beautiful thing we had ever seen and she is the joy of our life.
So why wouldn’t we celebrate such an important event as the day Millie, aka Dark Pink Girl, came into this world? I am absolutely certain she was divinely meant for us, and that’s more than enough reason to rejoice.
So…do you celebrate your pets’ birthdays? Let me know. Post below.
P.S. Just a little heads-up: Between 10 and 11 a.m. (eastern time) on Monday, April 11, I will be on our Facebook page live discussing my new book, The Promise of Hope: How True Stories of Hope and Inspiration Saved My Life and How They Can Transform Yours. I know it’s early, I know it’s a Monday, but I hope you’ll join me for some inspirational stories. See you then.
