Sunday, June 14, 2009

my 3 sons

My first dog was Toto. We got him as a puppy when I was about 5. He was a black & white mutt, and friendly. When my parents divorced three or four years later, my father took Toto with him. I don’t remember being too unhappy about it. There was enough to be unhappy about. My mother said my father needed the dog to protect his new house, but I’m pretty sure she didn’t want either of them.

When I was in junior high, we adopted a little poodle named Bunny. Dumb name, but she came with it. Every step you took, she was at your heels, nipping your feet, trying to get you to play. I considered this my sister’s dog. My step-father was also fond of her. We never took her for a walk, just let her relieve herself in the yard. We had a big yard. She was a small dog. She died of smoke inhalation when my mother set the house on fire with a cigarette.

My father also had a dog named Django that I often used to dogsit. This was a shepherd mix, a nice dog, mostly because he wasn’t mine. He was brown with beigy red patches, head more labrador than shepherd. He lived to be very old and was put to sleep to end his suffering. Why do we consider this right and kind when it comes to dogs but not to people? This is screwed up.

I have a dog now, too, named Stella. She’s a handsome dog, friendly and well behaved, aside from eating garbage and other dogs’ shit. I like her but at this point I know I’m not a dog person, or a cat person, a rabbit person or fish person. I’m hardly even a person person. But the kids and husband wanted a dog and I went along. On the evening before we got her, we all voted and I indicated a desire to vote no. They looked at me like I’d taken a shot at the pope, but luckily missed, and was thus responsible for the pope for the rest of my life.

9 comments:

fleck said...

When I was 5, my mom told me I could have a dog when I was older. When I was 26, it still seemed increasingly unlikely. Now living up here in northern Germany, where the collective might of dogs warrants speculation that they will soon hold elected office, I resolved my long-standing pet dissonance (never-had-dog/don't-really-want-one-after-all) with 2 coping strategies: 1) got a highly gifted imaginary dog + 2) if they can unleash, so can I. So if you want relief from the responsibility, I know a Cairn terrier who understands statistics who'll happily make off with that mitre!

Ron. said...

Dogs.....Yum.

lucas said...

An alarmingly beautiful photo.

I'm very sympathetic to animals, without feeling the need to have them in my house. That said, I just got a cat, who (disappointingly) is rather dog-like in her craving for attention.

Naming her after an ecstatic Hindu poet doesn't seem to have helped.

SarahJane said...

fleck - i like your strategy. i should have recommended it to my children.
ron. - if you'd like one, i'll send mine along. she'd love vermont.
lucas - maybe your dog has misunderstood his name as "roomy," as in make yourself at home. smile

Ron. said...

Sarah:
Don't get me wrong; I mean "YUM!", as in "Dinner is served." Of course, if you really wanna send me the pooch....

SarahJane said...

oh, THAT "yum."

Anonymous said...

I think that humor is funny. Someone told me once that the response to, "Do you like dogs (kids)?

Yes, but I don't think I can eat a whole one.

Valerie Loveland said...

The look on your face in the photo is perfect to go along with this post.

I love cats. I like dogs, but I don't like being responsible for dogs. I really liked my job at the pet resort receptionist because I could hang out with dogs all day but not have to do any of the dirty work.

BJeronimo said...

I just noticed what you meant by teh facial expression on both of you. What seems to be out there but unspoken is the tether between the two of you.

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