Going to the Dogs(b)|宠物的幸福生活

"It's so nice to get a sunny day for a change, so I just put my work aside and brought the dog outdoors," says Mr. Su. He came out with his wife, both dressed for recreation, and their nine-year-old Golden Retriever, Tango. Tango's owners have decided not to have children, and they are raising the dog with all the devotion they would give a baby. Besides his regular dog food and snacks, Tango also gets nutritional supplements including glucosamine to eliminate some of the effects of aging, fish oil to prevent cardiovascular disease, and another product for a glossy coat. They spend at least NT$5,000 a month on Tango. In addition, Tango gets taken out for a run for at least half an hour per day. On weekends and holidays, they get together with friends and their dogs and go hiking or to the big, open riverside park where dogs can run to their hearts' content. While their dogs play, the humans swap seemingly inexhaustible anecdotes of their pets' antics.

"In general, a typical Golden Retriever will start getting white hair on its face at about four years of age. But we've been very conscientious about nutrition and exercise since he was a puppy, and now he has a lot more energy and a much healthier coat than similar dogs his age," says Mr. Su with obvious pride.

Mrs. Su adds that dogs need to socialize, and they can only learn social skills by interacting with other dogs. "If a dog is usually introverted or hostile to being approached, that means the owner hasn't done a very good job of raising the dog."

“难得出太阳，我把工作排开带狗狗出来走走”，三十多岁的苏先生夫妇一身休闲打扮，带着9岁的黄金猎犬“探戈”来此。夫妻俩打定主意不生孩子，把探戈当儿子养，平日除了饲料，零食外，还让他吃蔬菜和坚果混合的营养补充品“Vita Energy”,防止痴呆的葡萄糖胺和心血管疾病的鱼油，以及让毛发光泽亮丽“In”;每月花费约五千多元。“狗狗肥胖问题很多，一定要运动”，探戈妈妈每天都会带狗儿子跑步至少半小时，假日则常常呼朋引伴，邀约其他的狗爸妈一起爬山或到河边公园跑步，一面聊聊说不完的狗儿女趣事。

“一般黄金猎犬4岁时脸上毛色就会开始变白，我们从小就很注重他的饮食和运动，探戈9岁了，活动和外观毛色都比同年龄好很多”，苏先生骄傲的说。

“朋友过年是给探戈红包，我拿去买牛排加菜，还拍照告诉他，妈妈没有把他的红包吞了”。苏太太说，狗儿很需要朋友,需从互动中学习社交，通常脾气古怪或孤僻的狗儿都是因主人教养上出了问题。