moxie

moxie: Force of character, determination, or nerve

Typically our two year old lab, Mender, has oodles of moxie.  He is strong willed, energetic, and determined to play fetch twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.  If you have ever owned a lab you know this quality I speak of.  And you know that when you do sit down to rest or avert your attention elsewhere, they whine, "plaaaaay with me, come on, play with me! Look I have a ball, and a Frisbee, and a rope! I can get the little dog if you want. Pleeeeease play with me. sad face. come on, just play with me. Oh, idea! play with me!!" This is extra true, until you are unpacking from a trip out of the state, and a melatonin tab escapes onto the floor...rolling...rolling...rolling...spinning round to a stop and whooosh, in dives Mender, licking up the tab. TRRRRRREEEAAT!

Oh no. So, then I shout to my roommate, "Mender may or may not have eaten a melatonin tab just now. Don't worry though, it's perfectly natural, it will just make him sleepy."  Sleepy, that's an understatement!  When it was time to go to bed, we reached the stairs and he turned and looked at me, his eyes said, "are you kidding me, I'm not hiking that huge mountain, I can barely even wag my tail." He turned to lie down right in that very spot, and instead, crashed into the garage door. Bang, his head hit, but he was too cracked out to even notice. We, yes both of us, had to push 80 pounds of tired up the stairs, lift him into bed and hear his snoring for hours.  Apparently, we learned this from doggie WebMD, melatonin is used as a sedative for pet with debilitating anxiety.