So, I had a chat with the vet this week.

It was a long chat. He used a whiteboard. With diagrams. And 5 options.

Because one of my puppies has a limp. A kinda big one.

The limp doesn’t stop her trying to come for a run. Or dropping a stick at my feet at the beach. Or chasing the family of magpies out the back.

But she looks different in her ‘down faced dog’. And kinda shifts her weight of her back L leg. And sometimes holds it off the ground.

My puppies are 10. They were my babies before my babies. And apparently now, they are in their twilight years.

With 70 year old anterior cruciates.

And via a non-permanent marker and a sympathetic smile, I have been told that I must be the common sense for my dog.

For apparently, she has none.

So i’m told her instinctual drive to run, jump, and chase will over-ride her body’s pain. And she will continue to do so until she literally can’t stand up anymore. Until the cruciate gives way completely.

And snaps.

So we don’t run anymore. We have started walking. But when I get her to the beach, she cocks her head to the side. She looks past my eyes and through to my soul.

Life can be boring if you can’t play.

Think inversions, balance and kapalabhati.

We all have an instinctual life. One that is innately open and fresh. When we take the time to go slowly, we can be more interested in what we already have. In the process rather than the results.

We have a choice to hammer ourselves or heal ourselves.

I let my lovely old puppy of her lead on the sand. She rolled. And sniffed. And danced. And played. She ran for a little bit.

But she didn’t run too far.

Because for an old Kelpie, she’s pretty smart.

Don’t let anyone else be your common sense. Unless you are a dog.

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