A Short List

...of 7 things that have shown us that Leo is Not So Bright:

1) He consistently runs into the screen door. Apparently he has yet to learn.
2) He has more than once gotten his harness caught on the drawer pulls in our bedroom and kitchen. He does not cry for help, but rather begins to gnaw at his harness/his leg in an attempt to free himself. This is why Leo doesn't wear the harness in the house anymore.
3) He has shown Penny that Trash is Terrific, which lead to the two of them destroying some pork chop bones and almost putting me into cardiac arrest. Yes, they are both fine.
4) He only barks at things after Penny has initiated the barking, often looking in the opposite direction from Penny's target.
5) He refuses to walk up the stairs to go to bed at night. One of us must carry him.
6) His favorite game is "chase Penny's toy and then run back to the kitchen without getting near Penny or the toy."
7) He not once but twice fell out of the kayak while chasing birds this week. No, he did not swim afterwards, but instead chose to sink like a stone. Of course I managed to grab him and pull him back in, but all those people I laughed at for using dog life preservers? Sorry guys. I'm joining your club.

And of 7 Reasons to love Leo:

1) His simple adoration of Penny. He showers her with kisses whenever he can and follows her wherever she goes. She is still slowly, slowly warming up to him.
2) Above all things, he loves snuggling on the couch. We think this is why he refuses to go to bed at night - he wants couch cuddling to last forever.
3) His patient acceptance of anything I need to do to him. Brushing, vet visits, etc. He even rested on my shoulder for about 25 minutes while we quietly paddled around a pool yesterday, even after his traumatic water experience on Tuesday.
4) While Penny chooses to ignore most children, Leo is a patient and caring companion. He loves playing with kids and is loving and gentle with even the most rambunctious of humans.
5) He has really drawn Penny out of her shell. Before him, she would have prefered to stay inside with us all the time. But now, she is more friendly with both other humans and other dogs. It's great!
6) He may not be smart, but he is obedient and loves training. He has 'spot!' down to a science and loves 'puppy pushups', (sit/down/sit/down in rapid succession).
7) He has decided to keep us. At first we believed for a long time that he was a 'bolter' and ran off from his other family and got lost, hence ending up a stray. We kept a tight leash on him for the first six weeks he was with us and did have a couple of instances where he got away and ran off, scaring us half to death. However, after being home for a couple of weeks, I felt like something has changed. He's decided to keep us. I had him loose on walks this week and he stayed right by my side. We'll keep you, too, Baby Leo.