Dogs I Have Loved

My first dog was a Norwegian elkhound.  I was in second grade when my folks brought Torgy home.  We lived in Minnesota, which is a good place for an elkhound.  They are Nordic dogs of medium sized, square in shape with a thick outer coat of silver gray and an undercoat of white.  Their tail curls over their back, the muzzle is short and wolfish with a black mask. They are smart, loyal, brave, family loving and given to roam.  This is a dog who thinks his “yard” is the distance he can cover in a day and still make it home to his dog dish by dark.  You cannot contain them.

            My second dog was a child loving white German shepherd.  He was quite large but did not have an aggressive bone in his body, until a stranger entered our house.  My husband’s co-worker had come to the door while I was on the phone and I had waived him in.  [That was when a telephone was attached to a wall!]  My four-year-old daughter saw a stranger come in the house and started to cry. The co-worker leaned over to comfort our daughter just as the dog came up from the basement to see a stranger trying to touch “his” child.  Nikita had that poor soul backed against the wall in a heartbeat!  He didn’t bite or snap, but that person wasn’t going anywhere either.  I had to sort things out in a hurry.

            My last dog was a mutt.  His mother was a German shepherd but his father was a traveling man.   Viking was a big dog, too.  Like all shepherds he shed that double coat 24/7.  We found his fur in the ice trays!  But he took care of us, loved us, showed us how to grow old and taught us how to deal with the death of a loved one.  That is the sad beauty of a dog’s life.      

            I bring this up because the Westminster Kennel Club is on live television Monday and Tuesday, February 13 and 14.  Begun in 1877, the Westminster Kennel Club Show is the second oldest sporting event in the United States (the oldest is the Kentucky Derby).  It is also the only place on television where the word, “bitch” is used reverently.   This dog show is like opera, even if you aren’t into the subject, you can still enjoy the spectacle. 

            However, the real, “best in show” winners aren’t at Madison Square Garden.  The dogs who have really grabbed the brass ring are the mixed breed mutts that live here at Sandpipers Resort in Edinburg, Texas.  These are the dogs who have been adopted, many right off the rural dirt roads where they were trying to scratch open trash bags to get a little food, by retirees at our park.   The pups come in every color, shape and size. They came to their owners from a life of hard knocks, afraid of their own shadows.  In a few days, after bathing, de-worming, steady food and gentle care, they are transformed.  You can see them, trotting at the head of the lead, tail wagging, head up, curious, alert and, most of all, happy!  The same can be said about their new owners. 

These dogs have landed in the honey pot and they know it.  They return the favor by loving their owners and bringing joy to everyone who sees them.  I admire the dogs at Westminster, but if I wanted a dog, I’d get one from our local shelter—they’ve earned it.

Love all of God’s creatures, and keep the faith.