Swan Song for a Dog Mom

In honor of Mother's day.

I will pick up your hot, steaming poo, even when it’s unbearably stinky and dribbles. I will defend you, even though I know you really tried to bite that mastiff. I will try not to be embarrassed when you sniff my crotch with utter absorption. I will throw the ball for you until my arm hurts. And my newly manicured nails get filthy with dirt and grass.

I will try not to laugh at other dogs when they chase you. And fail miserably.

I will talk to other dog Moms, even though I’d much rather watch you prance, and dance, and shimmy. I will clean your spit from the car windows, even though I tell you to use the handy wipes. I will take you to the Home Depot. I will let you stand in the cart as I wheel around the garden department, watching you flirt with people in orange aprons.

I will try not to kiss you in public. Or fix your ears when one flops backwards.

I will let you lick my face and try not to remember if it was a dog’s butt or goose droppings that you licked right before. I will take you to the lake so you can practice your hunting skills on a stick. I will fish you out when you suddenly remember that you’re a dog, not a duck. I will yell at you when you run across the street. To catch a squirrel, or a ball, or a plastic bag.

I will cook an extra burger on the grill to add to your dinner. I will watch you eat yours before I eat mine.

I will hunt down shank bones in the meat department. I’ll try not to look offended when the butcher asks for my number. I will give you baths in the bathtub I’ve just cleaned. I will run the water between warm and warmer, just the way you like it.

I will try not to brag about how pretty your eyes are.

I will smooch you shamelessly when you snuggle up to me, too drowsy to avoid my kisses. I will lie awake the nights you run a fever. Or throw up. And look at me with that utterly miserable face. I will wish I had the power to heal your physical distresses as effectively as you heal my emotional ones.

I will look at my parents kindly when they scold me for not having children. For I’ve known more motherhood with you over the past five years than a lifetime of parenting could ever teach.

I will think of how the tips of your mouth turn up in a smile when I’m on the train commuting home.

I will not think of a time when your tiny body will not bring mischief and magic to the day. So I try not to get moody or expose you to my ill-temper. For I know you are one thing and only that. The most perfect form of companionship that could be shaped in flesh, bone and velvet ears.

Dog Day Wednesday

Wednesday was a good dog day. Walked Duke in the balmly, breezy Spring evening while being serenaded by birdsong. The narcissis are still in bloom, the Dogwoods are just showing their salmon petals while the apple and cherry blossoms trees are dropping their glorious pink and white blooms. Met two new potential play date pals for Duke, Precious, a tri-color female Jack and Lola, a taffy Pit Bull/Lab mix. Both girls made a big fuss over Duke, Precious in particular who nuzzled her breed mate in appreciation. Matter of fact, she appreciated him so much she sat down and cried when we left. Duke, who prefers human contact to canine, flattened his ears and gave her a deep, intense stare.

Later that evening I caught the PBS special "Dogs that changed the world." Fascinating not just for the great dog footage, but for the historical bent on the canine/human relationship. Premise being for 15,000 years (!) dogs have served men. As hunters, as protectors, as herders. But in the past century, the Victorians dramatically changed that paradigm. They turned dogs into pampered playthings, altering the purpose of dog from assistant to child, friend, even a partner. As a result of this shift, we are now experiencing a crisis. 5 millions dogs are banished to animal shelters every year, and not just due to over population or over breeding. This is due to the fact that humans procure a dog and are unable to handle the animal. They don't behave like a child or a lover or a pal. They actually want to do things. Take my fave breed - the Jack Russell. This little guy was breeded to be small, ferocious and powerful. They are natural born rat killers and although we didn't get Duke to kill rats on our plantation, he still hunts anything small that moves. Socks, birds, squirrels, and yes mice. This behavior is hard-wired. Not only in him, but in all dogs. Their original reason to live has not been breeded out of them. So you have the Collie type dogs herding small kids or causing a ruckus when there's no work to do. You have the retriever/labs picking up any old item and returning it to their master. 100 years of not allowing dogs to be dogs and they fight back, unfortunately to their detriment. Humanity has forgotten the purpose of the canine.

But hope still exists. We might not have sheep to herd or rats to eliminate but we do have new needs that can utilize the extraordinary skills of our domestic buddies. Dogs are being trained to detect cancer in humans. They can detect diabetes and even the decrease of Insulin which can trigger a seizure. In China dogs are being trained to raise an alarm when they detect earthquakes. Can you imagine? A dog on the floors on San Francisco buildings to alert to seismic activity? All fantastic and rightly so for as we enter this new phase of history with man and dog, it only makes sense that dogs would ascend to a higher role, just as man hopes to do so.