Heidi ♥'s Rusty

As responsible Studio City pet owners, most of us have our dogs fixed at an early age in the interest of good family planning.  But even when they’re out of the actual mating game, I still believe that romance is alive and well among the canines.

 Take Heidi, for example.  Although she was spayed at about 16 months -- after nursing her litter of half-Lab puppies and moving to L.A. from Houston, TX -- Heidi always seems to go a little gaga in the presence of large, attractive male dogs (although after being a young, unwed mother, she usually gives eager puppies the brush-off when she meets them in the park).  Put Heidi next to a big shepherd, Lab or Bernese Mountain Dog and suddenly she’s dropping her dominant Alpha-female stance and backing it up towards the new hottie on her tippy toes to show off her flirty, fluffy posterior.

During her first few years of doggie day care, Heidi had a boyfriend, a large, goofy German shepherd named Gunther, several years her junior. Although my husband and I never observed this, we were told by the day care staff that one day Gunther got put into “detention” in the isolation room for rowdy behavior, and faithful Fräulein Heidi stood at the door, whining and howling until Gunther was set free. 

And Heidi has always had a soft spot in her heart for Rusty Jr., the cutest working dog in Studio City.

  Rusty, an 8 ½-year-old Rough Coated Collie (also known as a Long Haired Collie), is the proprietor (with human store owner Terry Wainscott) of Rusty’s Discount Pet Center, on Ventura Blvd. near Colfax.  Rusty Jr. inherited the job from the late Rusty Sr.--a Sheltie who is no blood relation but  was the first dog to oversee the store, which opened in 1987.  Rusty Sr.'s smiling face still appears on many promotional materials.  Rusty Jr. will oversee Rusty’s Annual Doggy Easter Hunt next Sunday, April 24 beginning at noon (visit the website for details).

The main draw for us pet parents are Rusty’s competitive prices, helpful staff and wide selection of toys, especially Heidi’s favorites, the kind with loud, irritating squeakers.  We also appreciate the fact that they were open late and had deodorizing enzymes on hand when Heidi got skunked one night—unfortunately, just after a professional bath.  But for Heidi, the main attraction is Rusty Jr., who patrols the main shop, Rusty's Pets, and its adjacent grooming and pet supply storefronts with his signature mellow calm.  In fact, with his long, straight hair and aura of ultimate cool, the dog reminds me of Leon Russell.

Heidi loves to shop at Rusty’s regardless of whether Rusty is on duty, although she always sniffs around for him, brown eyes filled with hope.  But earlier this week, when we stopped in for our usual 28-pound bag of fish-and-sweet potato kibble, there was peaceful Rusty, padding along the sidewalk out front, long coat gleaming in the sun.  Heidi was out of the car like a shot. 

Owner Wainscott delighted Heidi by inviting her into the showroom with all the dog beds and cat trees to spend some quality time alone with Rusty.  But Wainscott’s first question was to ask whether Heidi had been spayed, because Rusty seemed particularly mesmerized by her.  Yes, I assured Wainscott –but it just goes to prove that love is about something bigger than the biological imperative, even for dogs.  This pair was so busy grinning and following each other around the showroom it was hard to get them to sit still for photos. You could almost hear them giggling.

As the store’s spokesdog, goodwill ambassador and official “Pit Boss,” we must assume that Rusty—international sex symbol that he is—will continue to play the field.  And, as Wainscott describes Rusty, “he’s a workaholic just like me,”  which does not bode well for finding time for many play dates with Heidi.  But as a parent, I applaud Heidi’s maturing taste in men—especially after Gunther, whose naughty day care behavior suggests he is definitely a doggie Peter Pan.  And unlike Gunther, Rusty is Heidi's age.

 And in marked contrast to that shiftless, no-account Labrador who knocked Heidi up in Texas so many years ago—this one has a steady job.