Know that your humans appreciate you, even if they don't know all the things you do for them

Hey Yukon,

What does a hard-working dog need to do to get the respect of their human servants?  My humans talk about how I just lay on the bed all day long, doing nothing -- but nothing could be farther from the truth!  From this vantage point in the upstairs bedroom, I keep an eye out for marauding giraffes, who could show up at any time and wreak havoc in our neighborhood. It is a taxing job, and at night I am bone-weary, but even so, I spend the evenings in this same bed, standing watch. And I get no thanks, and only the occasional scrambled egg for my efforts. (My human blows on the eggs before she serves them, so they don't burn my mouth, so that's nice.)

I am thinking that I should contact my attorney, J. Noble Daggett of Dardanelle in Yell County, and ask him to draft a stern letter. What do you suggest? I note that there has not been a single giraffe attack in this area since I started my daily vigils.

Thank you Yukon, you're the best. 

Sincerely,

Ranger, in San Diego

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Hey Ranger,

It's great to hear from you. I can empathize with your plight, and I know down in Balboa Park and Escondido that there are roaming herds of giraffes. Kudos to you for keeping them away from your home. I have a similar problem, not with giraffes but with an unending horde of squirrels. I'm constantly protecting my house from those rodents, but do my humans appreciate my efforts? Not at all. And it is tiring. I have to chase them, and bark at them, and glare at them, like in the picture below. The squirrels know my wrath, as I'm sure the giraffes are aware of your ferocity.  

But while our humans may not understand the perils we thwart in their defense on a daily basis, they do appreciate and love us. They won't say, "Thanks for scaring off the giraffes," to you or, "Good job fighting back the rodent army," to me, because they just can't imagine the danger. They're only human, after all. But they  do appreciate us. The best we can do is be patient with our humans and their shortcomings, and continue our heroic efforts in guarding our homes from dangers our poor humans can't sense or even imagine.

So hang in there, Ranger, and know that you are not alone in your struggle. I'm sure your humans love and appreciate you, even if they have no idea of all you do for them.  

On the bright side, my human friends at Waterfield Designs are working on some more good products for us. That's one way you can tell that our humans appreciate us.

Let me know if you have any other thoughts or questions. Use your human's email to contact me at [email protected]. 

Yukon