One day I discovered just how much Maxi really loved me and how brave he could be. I was exhausted and achy after a day of teaching and decided to soak in the whirlpool bath--a luxury that I usually didn't indulge in because I would spend most evenings giving the dogs attention after work.
I left the bathroom door open because Maxi scratched to get in and I didn't want to listen to the commotion while I was soaking. I just knew he'd never venture into the room once he realized I was drawing a bath because he'd been known to hide under the kitchen table when I tried to give him pre-dog show baths.
I sank into the bubbly water and closed my eyes in bliss. In less than a moment I could sense a presence in the room and fearfully opened my eyes. There stood poor Maxi two feet away from the tub with a look of absolute horror on his face. His "mom" was in the biggest puddle he'd ever seen! What to do? What to do? How to save her?
He flew toward the tub and began frantically drinking the water. No matter what I did, he would not stop. The look of fierce determination on his face plainly said, "If you are too stupid to save yourself, it is my job to do it for you even if it means drinking this entire tub!" I tried to push him back, but he just continued gulping. Soon he tried to jump into the tub to pull me out.
At that point I gave up trying to relax in the tub. Who needs relaxation anyway when you have the love of a dog brave enough to conquer his worse fear to try to save you?
