Max’s bath!

It’s March at last!
Fields are blooming, it hasn’t rained for 10 days and the sun shines. Full of joy I call the dog’s toilette service and book the first bath for the “little” Max, who weighs 50 kg and is almost 8 months.
On Friday night I change my car with my father’s one to load Max more easily and make him trust the means.
On the Saturday morning we are all ready to start this new adventure.

Step 1: equipped with würstel rolls, we decide to prepare a way like “ Pollicino” that from Max’s basket arrives straight in front of the open rear door of the Vito…first trial failed: while children prepare the way, Chanel silently follows them by eating all the small bites! We start again by updating the plan..

Step 1, second part: take Chanel, put her in the trunk of the Vito to avoid she eats the bait again and, in the meantime, to make Max quiet with her presence once arrived in front of the car door.

Step 2: to prepare another new way of würstel rolls and make Max follow us..the plan works! All is fine until the entrance of the door, then Max thinks well to turn back and go away. And we start with other würstel again but..nothing to do.

We go to plan B: we take him in our arms, in 4 people, something for a comic movie, and with not a small effort we succeed in charge him in the trunk…but the worst has still to come!

During the trip Max rests absolutely quiet until, suddenly, maybe because of the stress, or because he changes his mind or for a reason that will rest unknown for us humans, thinks well to punish us with a lethal weapon…a fart! The air in the car immediately gets unbreathable. Children start to cry and laugh and I, distracted by their screaming, I drive bad on a corner and ..go! The wheel rim of my father’s car is destroyed.

NO NO NOOOOOOOO it can not be happened to me! ( worthless to highlight that my dad adore his car and he lends it unwillingly). With a lot of effort we arrive to the square of the toilette and I can finally Rita S.O.S. ( my sister, the holy one..) to ask her to take and have the rim repaired before my father notices it and disinherits me.

In the meanwhile – it hasn’t happened for 10 days – it starts raining. NO NO NOOOOOOOOOOOO it is not possible why just today, couldn’t it wait for one more day?
I open the door of the car and, under the rain, I try and make Max get off but nothing, I am obliged to push him until the entrance of the toilette where he obviously enlarges his paws and with the safety allows by his 50 kg he stops in front of the door. Help! Two young and strong men run to help me and the three of us can get him up and take him in the toilette room. Here our faithful ally Chanel comes to help and, hoping to relax him, we decide to have her washed first, in order to show Max that nothing dangerous would happen in that room.

In fact Chanel, aware of the mission and that we relied on her, is ready in 20 minutes: shiny and talco smelling! Now it is the Count’s turn! Again the three of us get him up and we put him in the bath. I stay with him the whole time, we never know, and to relax him I wash personally his neck and head, then we use the hair dryer. Fur flying everywhere and all of us wrapped in the fur cloud!

Two hours after, at last, Max is clean and perfuse too ( he…we are sweaty and furry and would need a shower!). We leave the room, we make him drink and walk and then the same three of us ( dead tired) charge him again on the Vito that has been in the meanwhile repaired ( by luck! I will not be disinherited thanks to may Holy Sister Rita!) and we leave to home, while it is showering as a Tomorrow never comes. When we arrive the weather is improved, Max gets out the car running and, with the tail among the paws, hides himself behind a bush.

I don’t understand. I try to make him get out from there but all my efforts are vain. Hours go, but nothing, he doesn’t move from there, he is offended and he avoids looking at me.
I go and do the shopping and buy some minced meat for him, with the hope to “ corrupt” him and conquer him again, but still nothing, he doesn’t move.
A day goes by and he doesn’t move yet. Well, at this point I use my “secret weapon”…I only have to try with Bachs’ flowers, that help him to relax and overcome the stress, in this case a stress for the first bath!

After 2 doses and 1 hour, I offer him a piece of Parmesan cheese that disappears in only one bite. Very well!
I wait for some hours and ( according to the instructions), I offer Max the second does of Rescue Remedy and, as the sun is back, I go nearby his bush with nonchalance to plant new flowers in the pots. He looks at me curious, but when I call him, he turns on his back again…he is still angry! What a touchy!

He wants to keep his muzzle, but he has not thought about the 3 punk Labradors who arrive running and start playing with my saucers transformed immediately in very fast Frisbees! A that point the curiosity and the willing to play win: the Count doesn’t resist and gets out from the bush to join his friends, and remake the band of the 4 punks!
For another 2 days I have kept on with the Bach’s flowers and then all has come back normal. Also this time the remedy has been effective: Max is quiet and happy again. Mission fulfilled.