Tuesdays With Toby

It doesn’t matter what breed, all dogs seem to share a love of feeling the wind in their faces.

And since oxygen is still a free commodity, there’s really no reason to deny your whiskered wonder a little fresh air.

Last weekend and he was inconsolable. Normally, he loves going for rides in the car. He’s definitely an out-of-doors kind of dog.

Not on Sunday.

In fact, I was beyond myself trying to figure out why he was whimpering. I thought maybe his stomach was upset. Or maybe he had to “go outside.”

It was getting stuffy in the car so I rolled down the driver’s side window.

Instantly, Toby was in delight.

He has a rather large muzzle, so I had to roll down the window a fair amount before he could get his whole head outside and feel the fresh air in his face.

His whiskers quivered and his floppy ears blew in the wind. His eyes started to water, but that didn’t dissuade him. In fact, after a little while he started trying to get out the window more … and I had to roll it up, afraid he’d hop out into the middle of Queens Chapel Road.

I did a little online research and found some interesting answers to the question, “Why do dogs like to stick their heads out the windows of cars?”

Puppyintraining.com suggests, ultimately, that this practice is like a natural high for dogs, because they get a blast of hundreds of scents up their snout in just a moment.

The problem is lots of debris gets kicked up by the wind and wheels of cars. That debris can get into the dog’s face and eyes, causing irritation, pain and potentially a big vet bill.

This blog is a great resource for all kinds of things dog. The writer offers a suggestion for this “snout in the wind” situation—Doggles!

These doggie goggles can help protect your dog’s precious eyes from street shrapnel when he’s sticking his head out the window. You can purchase a pair for about $16. Once you get your pooch’s pair, Toby recommends taking a ride up (or down) Queens Chapel Road between Belcrest Road and Hamilton Street. You can really catch a breeze going up and down the hill.

Of course, “muzzle wind surfing” can be a win-win situation. I can’t tell you how many smiles and waves and friendly glances we got when drivers around us saw a yellow snout with a pink nose sniffing out my car window.