A girl and her dog

Today, my 2 year old ESS pup Maddy and I went for a quick run after I got home from work. Daisy, my old girl was not happy to be left at home, but a) I know she won't misbehave, b) I cannot handle 2 dogs and run simultaneously, and c) she has a hard time doing much more than 2 miles - at 45 pounds she is far to heavy to carry home fireman-style.
So, I took off the Invisible Fence collar, slipped on her walk collar, and off we went. It had been raining all day so there were lots of puddles and mud for her to find along the way. She enjoyed every one of them. Trying to control Maddy on a leash is a little like stuffing toothpaste back in the tube - a total mess. She pulls, she lunges, she stops short, she zigs and zags all over the place. I was hopeful today that taking my life in my hands would at the least make me faster as she pulled me down the street. Remember the Marmaduke cartoons? That's kind of how the walks always go, only with a 45 pound ball of fire instead of a Great dane.
I ran my usual route backwards this time, just for a change of pace. It was interesting to say the least. There was absolutely no way to control my pace with Maddy along. She drug me along at breakneck speed, then we slowed way down as I tried to hold her back and regain control. And so it went over and over. The end result was a less than spectacular pace of 12+ minute miles overall. From a positive perspective, my arms are still firmly placed in thier sockets and we made it home without a major wipeout. We'll just call it a success and call it a day.