Big Dog in a Little Bathtub

Yes, it's April Fools' Day, but this is no joke. Here is a task I have to complete twice weekly:
Bathe this dog in this bathtub. Convince her to stay put so her feet, which have a staph infection, can soak in the suds from the medicated shampoo. Then scour this bathtub. When the vet informed me that this was to be my task, I think my expression exactly mirrored Ruby's.

I know, baby, I know. You've got it rough.

Now for a bit of word nerd fun. It wasn't until college that I realized "bath" cannot be used as a verb. This must be something of a Utah/Idaho colloquialism, because I definitely heard it outside of my immediate family. It took four years of gentle teasing from my college roommates for me to break the habit. This usage is so ingrained that I feel like I'm putting on airs when I say, "I'm going to bathe my dog." It feels like it should be followed by, "And then will you have Wilson bring the car around? Ruby and I are going out for a puppy pedicure. Thank you so very much." However, "I'm going to bath my dog" sounds very, very wrong. So I choose to rephrase: "Ruby's getting a bath today."

Comments

[Darlene]

I love the look on her face! It's so perfect. Maybe you should try to make that face & take a picture with the 2 of you together!

[Susan Opel]

It sure is interesting what the environment can do for a vocabulary. When I lived in Indiana, everyone (English teachers included) felt that it was OK to utter the phrase, "Ruby needs bathed today." I say no - it should totally be, "Ruby needs TO BE bathed today." What thinkest thou?

[Kelli]

Poor Ruby! I hope her infection clears up soon for both your sakes.

[Susan Raihala]

Oh, my! What an expressive face Ruby has! I can tell exactly what she is thinking. Swear words are involved.

I grew up in the south, and my family's language was very colorful and heavily accented. I struggle still with pronouncing "can" as one syllable. It wants to come out "kay-un."

My favorite use of odd language was my grandmother's version of "it doesn't matter to me," which was "it don't make me no never-mind." She said it in a sing-song rural North Carolina accent as a joke, and it always made me laugh.

[jen]

Now THAT is one adorable dog! :) And I have no bad English comment...my words done be perfect. ;)

[elizabeth]

That's a great picture and a funny story : )

So let me get this straight: before college you DID say "I'm going to BATH my dog" instead of bathe? That must be pure Utah. Huh. Along the lines of "oh for cute." ; )

[Elisha Snow]

I was reading your blog and Ryan came up and saw the pictures of Ruby in the bath. He said, "Hey, why is that doggie in the bath? Was he bad? Did he go out and play in the mud so now he has to have a bath? He looks sad." For some reason he had a lot to say about a picture of a dog in a tub.

[Natalie]

ang, that is TOO funny! i say "bathe" all the time and have never thought twice about it. people really say "i need to bath my kids"?! holy crap!

[Jim H.]

I love that little dog.
I must say that I've lived in Utah for 23 years and have never heard anyone use "bath" as a verb.

[Angie Lucas]

Hey Jim, you should pay a visit to Riverton sometime. :-) I've heard it from relatives and non-relatives in Riverton as well as from relatives in Southern Idaho. I know very few non-relatives in Southern Idaho, so I can't comment about their use of "bath."

[Julia]

That poor dog; what a picture of misery!

I grew up in England & my family's always used "bath" as a verb as well as a noun. In fact, "bath" is in the Oxford dictionary as a verb. At a guess I'd say it's a class thing. "Bathe" certainly always sounds more posh - the sort of word you find in classical literature :)

[Holly Moss]

Oh, now that is just precious!

As for the word thing: I don't think I have ever noticed until now, but I think it wasn't until after living in Utah for two years that I stopped saying "heck" instead of "he**", which I never did before living in Utah.

Very strange.

[Catharine]

what an unhappy looking duck, but what a good good girl to stay put!! don't ya just love those "medicated" washing that must stay on 10 minutes to be effective.

[Jennifer Larson]

Your dog looks like my dog taking a bath, except my dog also has a message written on her face: "I am going to run all over your bed, dripping wet, as soon as I get out of here." She's usually right.

[Kim Ket]

Your dog is soooo cute! And BIG! Funny how different parts of the country have their own unique ways of saying things. My hubby is from eastern Pennsylvania, and his family all use the words "let" and "leave" interchangeably...eg. "Leave me go." "Today, I'm going to go a little crazy and leave down my hair!" "Let me alone...I'm on the phone." Weird, huh? But I have to say (no offense) so is "I have to bath my dog." OOooh.

[Jo]

Shouldn't it read 'having a bath' not 'getting a bath'? Sometimes we hear 'take a shower' I always wonder where are you going to take it?