Merry Christmas!

I would like to wish a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all my loyal dog readers.  I will submit another story on the weekend of January 10^th through the 12^th.  Again, Happy Holidays from your friend, Teresa

The Dog Sitter

When raising my children, we had pets.  We sometimes took vacations.  But we never left our pets at any place that boarded animals.  Instead, we relied on the good neighbor who was willing to care for them in our absence.  We never agreed on payment.  But always we  rewarded the good deed with cash or souvenirs.  We appreciated what they did for us.  I always felt the pet would be better off not taken out of his/her known surroundings.

Today we don’t take many trips.  If do, they are generally no more than a day.  This makes leaving enough water and food out for a day sufficient.  With the constant turn-over of neighbors, we have not found someone to leave our pets in the hands of.  Have things and people changed that much?  I miss the connection of neighbor helping neighbor. Maybe it still is that way in some areas.  But it is not in mine.

We were a new subdivision in the mid-seventies.  It was fine homes with neighbors around the same age.  They all had young children.  But here it is 2012.  The house next door has sold five times or so.  There are renters and owners across the street, down the street, and up the street.   Only a few original owners remain.  Their children are all grown and away.  With foreclosures hitting our street as well, it hard to really know your neighbor.  Memories of a time when things were different seep through.  It was one such memory I call to mind.  It does deal with feeding a neighbor’s dog.  Briefly in time, I would become a dog sitter.

A neighbor asked me to feed her dog while she went on vacation.  She lived two houses up from me.  I was to get her mail daily. I would place the mail on a table at the front door when entering with the key she gave me.  I was to let Duchess outside in the morning and again in the evening.  I checked and made sure food and water was out.  I allowed Duchess outside long enough to take care of business.  She never left her yard.  When called, Duchess came running.  I had recently given birth to my son.  Since I did not work, I found this routine interfered with nothing.

Upon entering the house, I always stroked the fine coat of Duchess.  She was a beautiful Irish setter.  I almost hated leaving her alone at night.  But at the same time, I knew she would be fine in her own home.  She did meet me at the door in the morning with a wag of the tail.  I guess she did hate being left alone.  The neighbor had spoiled her so.  After all, the neighbor had no children.  Duchess was her baby.  I enjoyed my time with Duchess.

It was about a year later that the neighbor moved to Texas.  With her, went Duchess and my friendship with that neighbor.  I never heard from her again.  What makes this story one of memory is not that Duchess did anything heroic.  But I do still remember that one week.  Maybe it was not as much for the dog, but how things once were.   It was neighbor helping neighbor. That was my second time to dog sit.  I had done it once before when renting our first house.  But it was my last time to do so.   I contribute it to, “The changing times.”

A Master's Personality

I have heard that if you keep a dog long enough that it begins to look like you.  I don’t know where that came from.  I never had a dog that looked like me.  I do believe though that a dog can take on your personality.  I do know of a case that I write about now.

My story began sometime after my graduation from High school.  I took on a job at the telephone company in downtown Nashville.  It was a time before the breakup of the monopoly of Southern Bell.  I had a good job working for “Ma Bell.”  But I didn’t see it at the time.  Because I wanted to work the same hours as my husband, I started working the night shift.  It was in the sixties and there I met two bosses that I would stay friends with.  Margaret was the Group Chief Night Operator.  She is deceased now.

Dot was the Night Supervisor.  She is still living and I talk to her often.  After both lost their husbands, they had moved in together to cut down expenses.  Since they lived together, it made visits to see them both easy.

They both had their own dog.  They lived in the house with them.  Both dogs were cocker spaniels.  Margaret’s dog was white and she had named her Goldie.  Dot’s dog was black and she had named him Inky.  These two dogs were as different as night and day.  But then; so were Margaret and Dot.  And they got along just fine.  Margaret was a quiet individual; whereas Dot was loud and boisterous.

The two dogs came across as comical to me.  The personality that came from each was the same as their owner.  Upon visiting them, Margaret would sit in her chair quietly holding the quiet Goldie.  Her personality and Goldie’s were both one of always low key.  Whereas; Dot’s dog Inky ran around growling at everyone.  And to a certain extent Dot had a growl too.  Dot’s words were known to bite.  I would take my children to visit with me.  On one occasion, Inky bit my son.  The dog had all shots.  He was a well taken care of dog.  But still it became in the future Inky was put in another room until the visit ended. The kids loved on Goldie, but learned quickly to keep their distance from Inky if he was left out.

Margaret would laugh about Dot’s dog and its personality.  We laughed too as that dog was just like Dot.  Dot didn’t appreciate the teasing.  But Margaret got the biggest kick out of encouraging the teasing from us too.

Don’t get me wrong.  Both ladies were good people.  But like everyone, we have our own personality.  We accept a person and their ways; or we don’t.  We accepted Dot and her dog.  And to this day, I am reminded still of Inky and Goldie.  Both dogs have since come and gone.  Dot always said, “You have that one love and nothing can replace it.”  Both Margaret and Dot had the strong bond of owner and Pet.  Neither got another dog!