Many of us, if not most, have had good experiences with dogs in our lives. I do have a couple friends or more who seem to have no affection for dogs; some prefer cats or simply see dogs as too much work or responsibility. But they are in the minority. That’s how important dogs are in our lives.
I’ve had a lot of dogs: Pal, Duke, Skipper, Danny, Inky, Heine, Zeppelin, Blitz, Maggie, Chessie, Cooper, Gypsy, Ace, JoJo, Rucker and Shelby. Like people, they all had their own personalities, some better than others. I can see their faces and still carry their memories around with me. I learned a lot from them.
The very name “dog” in English conjures up a variety of emotions. We are “faithful” like a dog, we “work” like a dog, we have a “stomach” like a dog and we get “sick” as a dog. There are other examples, some negative such as “the car he bought was a dog.”
The point, I guess, is that dogs have an outsize influence on our lives. I particularly like the witticism that “dogs are not necessary, but they make our lives whole.” For me, this sums up the role of dogs.
Presently, I have two dogs. Rucker, a big old black Lab, who lives up at Potlatch under the watchful eye of the pet nanny during my absence and Shelby, a small young Lab, who is constantly at my side here on St. Simons. Having her with me brings joy to my life.
Dogs are resilient, resourceful, tough, smart, loyal and devoted, cautious, sweet, loving, honest and caring They are always happy and have an unsurpassed joie de vivre. They know things we don’t.
As my wife says, “dogs could’ve been humans, but turned the opportunity down.” Come to think about it, maybe they would be overqualified.