A couple of years ago, I was signed up to do the Barking Buddha Doga teacher training here in Atlanta. I figured that I love yoga and I also love dogs, so what a perfect, fun combination that would be!

At the last minute, the instructor, Brenda Bryan, author of Barking Buddha: Simple Stretches for Yogi and Dogi, had to cancel because she got the airport in Seattle and the airline would not allow her dog to get on the airplane.

It was just as well.

I figured that any yoga class that also included dogs would just end up a matter of crowd control.

 

As it is, when I practice my yoga at home, Belle Belle takes over.

 

This morning, I was practicing wheel, shoulderstand and headstand. I had all my props set up. I even set up a separate mat for Belle and her chewed up dog toy of the day.

 

Belle went over to her mat, scratched furiously, and then, after I had done a couple of rounds of shoulderstand, she took over my blanket. Clearly, she viewed all my exertion as unnecessary. Why practice asana when meditation is just so much more relaxing?