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El Guapo: Noche wants to play all day and crawl under the covers with you at night. |
CommentsThe Return of Noche
By Flip SpecklemanPublished: June 20, 2010
Finally some peace and quiet around here. It’s a miracle this story made deadline with all the chaos in my life. We took in a foster friend this month. The only reason for the quiet is because he is at adoption day right now. His name is Noche, and he’s Costa Rican. Noche was actually in this very column about a year ago and was adopted. Due to circumstances beyond Noche’s control, things did not work out in his new home. When I heard Noche needed a place to crash, I immediately decided to invite him in. Actually my folks picked him up and I wasn’t really consulted. I wasn’t crazy about the whole “foster” idea. I know how this stuff goes; I was a foster about nine years ago. It’s a lot like rent with the option to buy. It was also alarming that Noche has never shared a house with a cat, and you don’t mess with my cat. The entire situation had disaster written all over it.
When Noche moved in, we all went for a long walk together. Noche is fast and he keeps my sister Olive busy, which scores him big points with me. When Noche came home to meet our blind cat, Tobias, he stared at him before running away when the cat made a move. I growled at Noche and maneuvered between the two of them. Nobody stares at my cat. A week later, and Noche and Tobias have regular wrestling sessions. They preen and groom each other. It’s pretty sickening.
Now as I sit in my private study with my paws over the typewriter, smoking my pipe, enjoying the momentary calm that having Noche at adoption day provides, I hear the people in my house saying things like, “I like him, I really like him.” The almost three-year-old kid says, “Noche is my dog.” I knew her before she was born. Where is the loyalty around here? It’s getting a little crowded at the house, and we are also watching Grandma’s hyperactive dog, which I think puts us at the Truckee town limit for dogs in a house. Please turn us in.
Honestly, our foster brother is a great dog. He’s tall, lean, and fast — and loves to swim. He knows basic commands, listens when he is called, and is fluent in Spanish. Noche acts like a wild man on the trails, running with reckless abandon, but loves to come home and crawl under the covers with you. He also enjoys lying under the couch with only his head sticking out, which is weird because our couch is only about two inches off the ground. We have no idea what breed Noche is, not that it matters to us. We are guessing Doberman/German shepherd/shar-pei. I would also like to add that in my opinion Noche’s ears are too small for his head. Ha ha.
Noche has been on several mountain bike rides with my folks, and he does great. He did manage to get quilled by a porcupine the other day. He had a few in his face but it was not as bad as some of the dogs I have seen who never quit bothering the porcupine and end up with a face, tongue, and mouth full of quills. Hopefully it was a learning experience.
Noche is now back from adoption day. I hear he narrowly missed a new home, losing out to a Lab named Jake. I don’t want everyone in my house getting too attached to our foster brother, and I’ll admit he is growing on me. But really, please adopt Noche.
In other news, Percy, who was in this space a few months ago, has found a permanent home with his foster mom. Percy had a rough history, and it’s great to hear he is moving up in the world. Harry the hound, a Flip’s Friends alumnus known for his beautiful singing voice, is also another failed foster with a happy ending. Congratulations Harry.
For more information on Noche or any of the other great animals at the Humane Society of Truckee-Tahoe, call (530) 587-5948 or visit hstt.org.
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