It was a beautiful day today and what a better place to be than outside in it.  If I am outside then it is vital that I harass my children into venturing out, and of course the dog has to be out too.  The temperature was balmy, snow melting, water running, and my dog covered mid- hip down in soggy gritty ick.  Twice today I washed my dog in the dish basin.  She, like many dogs, believes if she isn’t directly looking at something it ceases to exist.  When I place the basin in front of her, she refuses to acknowledge its existence.  Even though the basin is non-existent, trying to get her to place a paw in is a struggle.  Trying to wash up to her elbow while she persists on pulling away is challenging.  My favourite part of the whole exercise is having her back half lifted up with one arm, trying to maneuver the basin under her feet without sloshing with the other arm, while she attempts to make sure neither of her back paws ever touch the water.  The end result is a damp but clean dog, an aching gritty me, and a large area of wet floor.  I was thinking that since I have ventured into footwear for my dog with her winter boots maybe I need to create some spring boots for her.  I am picturing a fusion between hip waders and chaps.  I am not sure if she would hate the boots more than having her feet (and entire undercarriage) washed, but I might be okay with that.