Mackey The Water Dog

Mackey likes to help us. She alerts us any time a squirrel invades the bird feeders. She barks loudly and enthusiastically each day when the postal truck goes by and of course weekly when the trashmen come to steal the poop from the big can at the curb.

Lately Mackey has been looking to expand her watchdog status and she found a truly unique and annoying way to do it. She became a water dog. No she didn't grow black curly hair or webbed feet. She chose a different route.

Back in 2012 we had a terrible experience when our whole pack of dogs became ill from an encounter with cryptosperidium. Samba and Sky died and several others were left with permanent damage. Crypto is a water born illness and I don't know where my dogs came into contact with it, probably a puddle in the yard contaminated by wildlife.

I do know where I came into contact with it. When I visited Russia (at that time still the Soviet Union) I was very careful to not drink the water. I didn't eat uncooked food, no salad, and I brushed my teeth with wine. On our last night in Russia a friend and I went out for a drink and to talk over our exciting trip. In my fatigue, I forgot to tell the bartender not to put ice in my drink. I had two drinks with ice and didn't give it a thought until two days later when the cramps started. I was in tremendous distress for several weeks until my immune system fought off the attack.

All public water systems contain crypto but only a certain small level is allowed. Still those of us who have had the problem sometimes react to small levels. I was never able to drink the water in Maryland even though we had a filter. Heat is the only thing that destroys crypto. I've noticed that sometimes the water here bothers me, so for years I've boiled my drinking water. Since 2012 we've boiled all the drinking water for us and the dogs.

Twice a day, morning and evening we boil up two big pots of water, then transfer it to bottles for drinking. Rob usually does the morning boil and I do the evening. Mackey has learned to alert us when she hears the water start to boil. She runs from the kitchen to the living room and back barking at the top of her lungs. Whoever is closest hurries to the kitchen to turn off the burner once the water has boiled for a couple minutes. She's very proud of herself and thinks she's doing us a great service.

Who can argue with that kind of help?