DOG STORIES

Introduction

The man and his mate

     The characters in Dog Stories are referred to as a man and his wife, the man and his mate, human units, or just the man and the woman.  And, of course not to be referred to in any other way, the canine units are Chico and Jolie and Lady and Winston.  Dog Stories follows the adventures of Chico and Jolie and Winston and Lady as they impact on the bond between canine and human.  As it has been and always will be, the dog is man's best friend.  

     Three years passed since the young man left his home for a journey to the Far East, complements of the U.S. Navy.   Now, having decided what occupation he would pursue, he headed off to college. It was a small college, not much bigger than the high school he had attended.  And, as he noticed, there were several pretty ladies on campus.  The young man would date a few of these charming ladies.  But, unlike high school, the ladies would take a backseat to the young man's studies.

      For several weeks during the fall trimester, the young man seemed to see the same pretty blonde almost every day.  She was unaware that the young man was observing her.  Upon making inquiries, the young man found that the blonde was dating a gymnast.  She was a gymnast also,  and the two of them seemed to have a lot in common. The young man told himself to concentrate on his studies.  Time for the ladies would come later.  

     Autumn in the Colorado Rockies began to change to winter as the mountain peaks changed their autumn costumes of color to their bright white dresses of winter.  Within days that dazzling coat of white would spread across the college campus. As the snow accumulated day after day, snowball fights and Frosty the Snowman impersonators would show up all over the campus. Getting to classes also became difficult as the roads and walkways became icy and slick.

     In the first week of December, the pretty blonde found herself in a snowball fight. The young man happened to be in the vicinity and would join the fight.  He was armed with information that the gymnast and the young lady were no longer a unit.  He took deadly aim at the young lady and, seldom missing, would fire one snowball after another in her direction. 

     A cease fire and a trip to the student union for hot chocolate and coffee was cheered by all.  The young lady was quick to inquire about the young man who had pestered her so frequently with snowballs.  Having used that as an introduction, the young man asked the lady for a date.  Seeing each other almost every day, accentuated by several dates to movies and dances plus dating over the break between fall and winter trimesters, the two became a unit.  An engagement offered in February was quickly followed by an elopement in April.
                                              

A serious moment?

                                           
     The man and his mate moved from the college campus to a room with the mate’s aunt.  The man was driving taxi while the human units attended school during the summertime. Twelve hours a night for four days a week, the man studied under the dim glow of the dome light in the taxi while waiting for fares.  Little did he know that one night a puppy would be waiting for him in the middle of a twelve hour shift..

     In  what used to be called Mexican town, south of Durango, The man dropped off a fare and watched as a lady threw a small black ball of fur from her porch to the front yard. She yelled at the puppy with words that brighten the darkened  sky.  There man assumed she was pissed.  Apparently the puppy had soiled a clean rug.  The man asked if he could have the puppy (hoping to save the pup from further mistreatment).  She said yes and the man took the puppy.  The man's impulsiveness either works out well or gets him in trouble.  

                                                             
                                                                    Chico

Chico

     The puppy rode with the man the rest of his 12 hour shift. The man and the puppy drove around town, picking up a fare now and then, and the puppy would help the man with his homework, at least the man thought he did. The man would ask the puppy questions the man felt would be on the test. The puppy looked up at the man, with those big brown eyes, and wag his tail. As the man drove toward the one room bedroom the man and his mate called their first  home, it suddenly hit the man. What is he going to do with this dog?

     The man came home, parked the cab, and stared at the human unit's bedroom in the mate's aunt's house. It's just after two in the morning and the man didn't know what he going  to say to mate.  "Hi, Here is a wedding present. When will your Aunt evict us?”  The man opened the door as quietly  as possible and quickly stepped into the man and his mate's bedroom.

     Needless to say, the man and his mate survived that summer.  The man chose  to name the dog “Chico”. He was  just the kind of temperament that the human unit of Donna and Mick needed. Chico was the human unit's kid, a part of  their beginning family. Why did the man name  him Chico? The man felt that  Chico number 1 didn’t get to finish his time with the young boy and this Chico would continue that strong bond between a man and  his dog. The man and his dog fished,  played fetch, hiked and explored new trails high in the San Juan Mountains.  Chico got to run free in the forest, jump into the man's fishing holes and bring the man souvenir pine cones to play fetch with.

     Chico was extremely smart and always willing to please. The man and his mate taught him tricks until they ran out of tricks to teach him. Chico was just what the young man and his wife needed.  Something to dote over until they would start their own family.  That would be three years away and plenty of time for the dog and his human family to bond.

                                                                   
                                                                   Jolie

        

Jolie

     Chico also needed a companion when the human units were away or busy with books from school.  A miniature poodle named Jolie would be the next welcomed member of the family.  These two would be the human unit's kids  for the next three years.  They went wherever the man and his mate went during their college years.  Chico, as a puppy became their first to attend college.  He attended summer school with the  man and his mate taking a full load of two classes and four credit hours. His classes were “Art”, which met twice a week for two hours (most of which were spent sleeping on an un-level pedestal which rattled when his tail would wag indicating the need for a nature call and a walk) and Phys. Ed.  a student, the instructor declared, was his best of the summer!  How proud the man and his mate were!

     Chico and his companion Jolie, were given the rare treat of accompanying the human units to a Christmas party at a friends house.  We journeyed up stairs to play a card game and, because of the lack of furniture, we sat on the floor with hot butterd rum. Yes, the man and his mate were college students with not much money.  Enough for booze but not furniture.  Jolie, without the human unit's awareness, began a journey around the outside of the circle the human units occupied.  At each member of the circle sat a hot butters rum, which Jolie decided was very good.  No one noticed the little sips the now wobbly poodle had taken until the man and his mate bid our farewells and the poodle couldn’t navigate the stairs.  Once home the human units held the poor pup over the toilet while she emptied her stomach.  She never would go near a buttered rum again.

     Chico’s quality of life had deteriorated to a point where he no longer could run, hike, or play fetch with the man or his wife. Jolie was put down a year prior and now the man was faced with that decision again.  Chico, sensing that his master was near, wagged his tail in anticipation of a car ride, or some other enjoyable activity.  The man picked up his old companion and carried him to the car.  As the car began to move, Chico could feel the wind rushing in from the outside and place his head on the vacant window  opening as he had done so many times before.  Tears fell from the man’s eyes as he stopped  outside the veterinarian’s office.  The veterinarian and the man had talked about this time before and the only word spoken was by the man.  “Now”, was the single command given.  The Vet took Chico  and the man laid his hand on his friend and companion’s head on last  time.  The man cried.

     The man and his wife, now in their early forties, were busy raising a family.  Along with that came the responsibilities of paying bills, attending and being involved in family activities and learning to grow in their relationship. In all the business of life, that sometimes bordered on chaos, more pets became a part of the man’s family.  But these dogs did not fill the same need as before.  These dogs were family dogs that the family loved and cared for. 

     With the man’s children, soon to leave for their own pursuits, two new dogs were destained to fill the void created by the children’s search for their own place in society.  

     "Mr. Koontz!  It's raining and that dog is playing in the puddles."  The man watched the liver and white pup splashing in puddle after puddle.  Her tail was long, not like the bobbed tails of most spaniels.  She had wonderful lines and the beautiful face of a show dog.

Lady

     When the bell rang to change classes, the young pup played with any student  who would stop and pet her head.  Finally, with most of the students back in class,  the janitorial staff caught her and called animal control.  She was caged and taken away.  The image of that dog stayed with me all day.  (Another impulse?)

     When school let out, the man went to the pound to see if she had an owner.  The man was drawn to the dog but didn’t know why. He asked if anyone had claimed her.  “No”, the man behind the counter answered.  “In three days”, the man continued, “if no one claims her, she will be available for adoption on a first come, first served basis.”

Early on the third day the man brought the young pup home.     

I almost got it

      Lady was a ball of joy.  Her tail wagged continuously and faster when the man's children were around.  Although the man felt a strong impulse to allowed the dog to become his, he surmised the dog was for the family.

     She was around six or seven months old and curious about everything.  She soon found her way through a doggy door to the back yard and discovered the most wonderful thing a water dog could wish for!  A swimming pool!  But there was something strange about this body of water.  Lady approached the pool of water carefully and quietly.

     The man came home from work to check on Lady. Looking out toward the pool, the man could see Lady barking and trying to catch something around the pool. Not sure what Lady was after, the man hurried to the pool area and found Lady barking and growling at the pool sweep.  The pool sweep is a snake like vacuum tube that wanders around the pool randomly sweeping up dirt and debris and discharging it through a filter.  Occasionally, the sweep would break water as it ran up the side of the pool and that’s when Lady would try to catch it.

     The man watched awhile and laughed at the dog’s antics.  Feeling assured that Lady couldn’t catch the sweep, the man returned to the inside of the house.  Occasionally,  the man could hear Lady barking at the thing she felt shouldn’t be in the pool.  How quite it had become!  Oh Oh!  Hurrying to the pool area, the man shouted, “Lady”!  Lady’s head and ears came up followed by something white and appeared to have been processed through a shredder.  

     With the pool sweep dangling helplessly from Lady’s mouth, she moved toward the man anxious to show him her trophy and to get a pat on the head for a job well done.  She had saved the family from that snake - like monster!  The man’s voice sounded angry and irritated.  “No!  No!  Bad dog!” he yelled.  Lady’s tail dropped between her legs and she hung her head down.  “500 dollars for a new sweep!  Maybe I should take you back to the pound.”  The man’s anger passed quickly and holding Lady while talking in soothing tones, Lady was excused for excess puppiness.  Later the man would find out that springer spaniel puppies, like all puppies like to chew.  Springers just happen to have an extended time of up to two years before they stop.

     Eventually, lady would need a companion. The man and his wife decided that another springer spaniel would fit quite nicely with the man wife soon-to-be empty nesters.   Trips with their travel trailer and adventures to be had were planned for each summer. A new stage of life for the man and once again a dog that would fit that lifestyle would be found. But, it wasn’t lady.

     The man and his son answered a” puppies for sale” ad in the paper. These were springer spaniels and would fit the empty space needed for both Lady and the man. 

     “ $50 each,” the owner of the puppies said.  The man and his son each picked out a pup. The man’s pup had the show dog look with fine lines in a beautiful head.  The son’s didn’t look quite right. He seemed out of proportion somehow.  His body was heavier and shaped more like a block.  His head looked square and complimented his body.  His ears hung low and his feet were bigger than the other pups.

     “No”, the man said to his son.  “Not that one.”  

     As the man and his son walked around the yard looking at the other pups, the son’s pick had followed them around the yard.  When the man stopped, the pup stopped.  When the man, moved the pup moved with him. 

    “ I think you should take this one,” exclaimed the son.  “He seems to like you.”

     The son was right!  There was some thing about this dog that seemed to draw the man to him.

     “We’ll take this one.”, said the man, indicating the black, white and tan markings of the male dog.  The man picked up the pup and carried him to the car.  The man was rewarded with a wet tongue of thanks.  A new relationship was about to begin.

     “Well”, the man said as he and his son walked into the house carrying a trincolored ball of fur, “We found a puppy.”  With Lady bounding up and down with excitement, everyone followed the man and the furry ball to the back yard.  The man put the pup down on the grass and everyone stood back to critique and watch the new addition to the family.

     “That’s not a springer spaniel!”, said the man’s wife.

     “Yes it is.”, replied the man.  “We even have papers for him.”

are you or aren't you a springer spaniel?

     “Look at him!” exclaimed the man’s wife.  “His head is too big, his jowls hang down too far and his feet bend all wrong.  He looks like a basset hound, not a springer.”

Are you or aren't you a springer spaniel?

     After that comment, everyone turned to watch the puppy and re-evaluate their assessment of him.  Lady, still excited about the puppy, ran around him, sniffing and prodding him with her nose.  She had a new toy!  Who cares if he looks different .  The puppy continued to take in the smells of his new yard and, whenever someone would come to pet his big head, he would wag his bobbed tail with happiness.  He now had a forever home.

    Winston was quick to catch on to the routines of the house.  The dog door made house breaking an easy task.  Lady was the alpha dog in every aspect except at dinner time.  Winston stood his ground as after each altercation it became apparent that Winston was alpha dog at dinner time.  Lady would remain alpha dog in all other dog related routines. 

     When bedtime came, the man had to make a choice for Winston’s bed.  Lady had been sleeping at the foot of human unit’s bed and allowing Winston to sleep on the bed might cause some more problems.  The man chose to put Winston in a box next to the bed.  Should Winston cry or have some discomfort, the man would be able to sooth him by putting his hand inside and talking to him.  

     On the first night Winston cried for his brothers and sisters.  

The man’s hand went into the box.  Winston licked the man’s hand, curled up next to it and went to sleep.  “Ah”, the man said to himself.  “This will be easy."

     The man took his hand away from the box and rolled over to sleep.  Winston cried.  The hand returned back to the box.  Winston nuzzled it, curled up next to it and went to sleep.  The man rolled over and started drifting off to sleep.  Winston cried again.  The hand returned.  Once again Winston felt comforted and he went back to dreaming.  The hand retreated.  Winston cried.  “This isn’t working” the man thought.

     The man went to Lady’s toy box and returned with a furry stuffed toy.  Winston’s tail wagged when he saw the man.

     “Listen pup”, the man said.  “We all need sleep. “Pretend this is one of your siblings”.  The man tossed the toy into box.  Winston once again wagged his tail with delight.

     It took two weeks,  give or take a day or two, for Winston  to no longer need the hand.  The fuzzy toy stayed much longer.  The box was replaced with a padded one from a pet store.  Winston never slept on the bed but stayed on the man’s side of the bed, just in case he felt some need from the man.  And that need would come soon.  

     About four or five months old, Winston had a problem.  Late at night, when all was still, the man sensed that something was wrong.  Winston, acting like a drunken sailor and barely able to keep his balance, was attempting to get through the doggie door.  The man jumped up to try to find the problem just as Winston collapsed at the foot of the bed. The man, deeply concerned, sat down on the floor next to his dog and felt the body shaking uncontrollably.  Winston  was having a seizure!  All the man could do was hold his dog with Winston’s head in his lap and speak soothingly until his friend regained control of his body.  

     Winston would have several more attacks before finally out growing them.  With each attack, the man would hold his friend, strengthening the bond between them.

     Remember, springer spaniels have a tendency to chew anything for the first two years of their lives.  Lady’s chewing usually resulted in a something she thought was a prize.  (the pool sweep for example)  Winston’s chewing just for the love of chewing.  Aside from the array of toy sand rawhide sticks the man gave his two dogs, Winston would find other items to chew not on the man’s list, whicn included his house.  Chewing was compulsive and Winston had to chew.  

      The man woke up to the sound of crunching.  Trying hard to wake up and comprehend what was being crunched, the man noticed movement at the end of the bed. The man stood up out of bed, fumbled for the light switch and saw Winston gnawing on the bed post.  The man now wondered if the dog might not only be part basset hound , but also beaver!

     During another night, the man heard the crunching of  a very undetermined  source.  Once again the light flooded the room.  The man couldn’t believe what he was witnessing.  There was Winston chewing on the plaster around an electric wall socket.  

     Winston’s last chewing of a serious nature was the result of the wife’s mother leaving this life for a better one.  Winston and Lady came along as usual . Maybe another trip to their favorite place, the San Juan mountains in Colorado. The human units were busy taking care of the estate and selling what furniture was left after various relatives took items  they could use.  

Lady and Winston

     Winston and Lady, realizing that the eight hour trip was not for pleasure, busied them selves with long naps and exploration treks around the house.  Sometimes a hole would be dug trying to locate something beneath them.        

      After several days of settling the estate, one final day of selling the small amount of items  remained.  An almost new mattress had been purchased and asked if the human units could hold it so they could pick it up later. The man’s wife and her sister went upstairs to retrieve the mattress and ready it for pickup.  The man heard a scream followed by the man’s wife yelling, “Bad dog!” Winston had gnawed his way through a rather large portion of the mattress.  The buyer would be by soon.  Phone calls were made to friends and someone was found to patch up the damage .  Just in time.  The buyers were shown the damage and agreed to take it anyway.  As they left carrying the mattress, Winston sat by the gate, wagging his tail and waited for a pat on his head.  Now for the long trip home.

     Once at home, the human units fell into the routine of day to day living.  For Winston and Lady, an evening walk or a frisbee throw were anticipated.  Lady, who early in her life loved kids, would change that attitude and approach kids with a guarded aura.  The incident that changed her attitude towards kids came from visiting relatives.  The young boy, hanging on Lady began to pull her hair trying to keep her from leaving.  Lady would whine and cry each time the boy approached. Finally a growl, a snap of the jaws and a baring of teeth convinced the boy to quit. Lady, who had previously liked kids, now avoided them and growled when they approached her.  She loved adults.

     Although Winston would growl at some adults, his friendly attitude was met with “Good dog” or “Nice dog”.  When the man and his human companion went for walks, some of the other adult humans went for a stroll too.  And some times they had small versions of themselves. Winston, who we thought loved kids, would growl at them when he saw them from a distance.  As they came closer, his tail would wag and he would get the obligatory pat on the head.  The man and his wife concluded that Winston, when seeing smaller humans at a distance, he thought they were dogs.  Winston never met a smaller human unit he didn’t like!  

     Summer time meant trips to the mountains for camping and exploring or long trips to see the man’s daughter.  The man had a travel trailer which would be Winston and Lady’s second home.  

  

     There would be many trips to the mountains of Colorado.  Watching those two run and play and explore in an environment of unlimited freedom warmed the man’s heart.  They had been the perfect pair to be the man and woman’s companions for the middle age of the man’s life.  Winston, who's eyesight had always been scrutinized, never failed to add a new chapter to a trip in the mountains. 

your a cute kid but you smell funny

     One of the most favorite places in all of Colorado for the man and his wife is near the continental divide above Silverton.  This entire area was mined for gold and silver and many mines were constructed hoping to hit the mother load.  Most of the mines ran out of the precious metal while others are still active even today.  Highland Mary was a mine that was left when it no longer proved to be productive.  High above timberline in this beautiful country, were the remnants of that  a half century of looking for gold and silver.  

Winston's waterfall

     Above Highland Mary mine is a trail head that leads to Highland Mary lakes.  It is a fairly easy hike of about five miles.  It was, and the man still hopes it is, a pristine hike with only an occasionally rusty pipe or some other sign of the rush to riches in the last half of the nineteen century.    

     A stream of water cascades down from the lakes, past the mines and eventually joining the Rio de las Animas River in a journey to meet other streams and rivers pursuing the mighty Colorado River in a journey to the sea.  It is in this setting that Winston’s eyesight came to be questioned again.

       Early on in this scenic hike, the stream narrows and picks up speed, rushing over a series of waterfalls in a mad dash to find level land and catch it’s breath.Two of these waterfalls are quite fast, coming one after the other.  The second waterfall empties into a narrow crevice where the water bubbles and slams against big rocks and boulders.

     The man, accompanied by his mate and their two children, now grown adults, and Winston and Lady began the five mile hike to the lakes.  Winston, following the man, began wading in the stream above the first waterfall.  The man watched  Winston move towards deeper water.  Winston’s eyesight was in question once again as the human units saw what Winston didn’t,  an impending trip over the first waterfall.

     The fast moving stream took Winston.  With eyes showing more white than brown, Winston frantically tried to swim back up stream.  Things were happening too fast.  Over the first waterfall he went.

The final plunge

     The man’s son-in-law, standing at the bottom of the first waterfall, saw a pair of wide open eyes surrounded by rushing water disappear with a cannon ball splash at the bottom of the first waterfall.  For a few moments Winston failed to surface.  Then a head bobbed up  and the poor dog was helplessly trying to swim toward shore while the stream pulled him closer to the second waterfall. Winston seemed to sense the urgency  to get out of the water and away from the stream’s icy grip.  All eyes were on Winston knowing he would be seriously injured  if he went over the falls and into the rocks below.

     A hand reached out and grabbed Winston by the nap of his neck pulling him to safety.  The man’s son-in-law saved the day and further adventures with Winston.

     Another summer, another adventure with Winston.  Once again the setting was Highland Mary lakes with the man’s family in attendance. 

     The man’s son, now married, planned a hike to the lakes of Highland Mary.  He would spend the night in a pup tent with his wife and their newly acquired dog, a basset hound named Sebastian.  Everyone else would spend that first night with the man and his wife at a base camp near a lake called Little Molas.

     With the threat of rain whispering in the breeze, the man’s son decided on an earlier start to his destination above the timberline of Highland Mary lakes.  Sebastian followed along for his first adventure.  Winston and Lady spent that first day exploring around the camp site.

     The rain came.  It continued all night accompanied by brilliant flashes of lightning and loud reverberating thunder.  The next morning the concerned family proceeded to the trail head of Highland Mary.  The man and his son in law began a rapid climb up the trail with no let up from the rain.  Winston and Lady darted off the trail checking out every new smell only returning to the trail to check on the man.

     Suddenly, they were above timberline with just a short dash over rocks and boulders left to view the lakes.  The pup tent of the man’s son was anchored across a small pond of excess rain water.  

     Winston and Lady were having a ball!  Already wet from the rain, the two dogs now had a series of extra large puddles to add to their playground.  What could be better for two water dogs?

     Winston’s ears went up as he heard the mournful bellow of a basset hound.  The dogs greeted each other by running around and playing chase.  Hugs all around and everyone was safe and sound.

     It was noted that the rain fell mostly below the timberline.  The man was relieved and, curious about how good the fishing was, borrowed the son’s fishing gear and proceeded to the rocky shore one of the lakes.  Winston and Lady tagged along and occupied themselves by exploring anything that  moved or made a sound.  

     Winston had never been fishing.  All the other times he had been to the mountains and the man fished, he spent playing with Lady and exploring.  Lady had fished before Winston joined the family and wasn’t interested. She apparently thought that fish were wet, slimy and something only a cat would eat.  Winston sat by the man as he cast out the lure and began reeling it in.

     Winston sensed some excitement from the man as the line suddenly went taunt.  The man stood up and began to reel in the fish.  Winston stood up too trying to see what the man was so excited about. (remember Winston’s eye sight?)  The man pulled on the line.  Winston turned his head from the man to the water back to the man.  With a final lift of the pole, the trout was hoisted to the rocky shore.  The man reached for the trout  as it flopped around the rocks.  Winston stuck his nose after the wiggly thing trying to help the man.  Lady was right!   It did smell funny.  Finally the man had his prize between his feet.  Winston was now as excited as the man and waited to see what this prize was.  Before Winston had a chance to get a close up look at the man’s prize, the man threw the prize back into the lake.  

Time to go.  The Lady of the Lake.Where is Winston?

     Winston turned and watched the fish hit the water.  He looked at the man who seemed no longer interested in the fish.  Winston thought the man was either playing fetch or lost his prize.  Either way Winston jumped in the lake to retrieve the prize.  The man called after Winston but the dog was determined get the trout.  Lady and the man turned and walked toward the son and his son-in-law.

     Winston swam toward the place the fish had hit the water.  He went around in circles but couldn’t find the man’s prize.  When he heard his name from the man, he reluctantly swam to shore and joined Lady and the man.

     The man and his son and daughter-in-law talked of the storm and and it’s intensity.  Lady and Sebastian roamed around searching for their own prizes.  Winston thought only of the man’s prize that he had lost in the lake.  Winston turned and headed toward the lake.

Time to go Lady / Winston

     The man was ready to return to the base camp and inform the others that everyone was ok.  His son-in-law chose to stay and fish.  The man turned and looked toward the lake where Winston and Lady had been a short time ago.  Lady was trying to dig some foreign object from under a rock and Winston….where was he?  Looking around and calling Winston’s name, the man spotted him in the middle of the largest of the lakes.  Winston had apparently been swimming around looking for that trout for the past fifteen minutes!  The man called one more time but with a hint of authority which Winston reacted to immediately.  With his wet and happy dogs the man headed down the path. How many nights would Winston dream about that prize?

Littli Molas

     When the man first found this jewel in the San Juan Mountains, it was off the main road and tourist usually bypassed it on the way to Silverton Colorado or Durango Colorado.  It was a small lake void of any powerboats or even small motorboats.  Was stocked with trout and only lures or fly fishing was allowed.   Each summer the man would return to Little Molas lake.

                                                                                                                                                                            A clear and clean shoreline surrounded the small body of water with none of the trash usually left by bait fishermen.  There were only five or six spots to set up camp.  Mostly, there were tents and occasionally, like the man, a small trailer would capture a prize camping spot.

    With the campsite secure and evening quickly approaching, the man built a campfire.  And evening meal was always followed by a dessert of samores.  As the evening begin to turn dark and black the campfire cast strange flickering shadows.  The human units seemed hypnotized by the flames, staring at them and watching them dance.  Winston and Lady were ready to retire for the night.   The temperature had fallen as both dogs moved close to the warmth.  The fire popped and crackled. The breeze and sent puffs of smoke in random directions causing a shift of position to avoid the smoke.

     As the fire died down the next show on the marquee were the starry lights of the night sky.  The milky way was an awesome site.  Only slightly better was an array of shooting stars.  Lady and Winston slept soundly.

     In time, the demand by the tourist industry for more fishing and camping areas, led to the opening of bait fishing at Little Molas. In two or three years, Little Molas was transformed into a trash lake, cluttered with fishing line, tin cans, beer bottles, candy wrappers and various other  non biodegradables.  This was the setting at the lake the last time the man and his mate camped with Winston and Lady.

     The fishing was terrible.  Even the tourist were mumbling and griping about it as they tried all their limited bait supplies.  The human units decided to take a hike up the mountain that overlooked Little Molas.  It was always a pleasant and easy hike, more like a stroll then a hike.  Most of the tourist wouldn’t bother walking around looking for new flowers to categorize  or interesting rocks that might blend in a rock garden.  Also missing was much of the trash associated  with the lake.

     Winston and Lady gladly joined the man and his mate for a stroll through nature’s playground.  Who knows what new and unusual events might take place or creatures they might uncover.  There were numerous critters that teased Winston and Lady, but once the two dogs advanced, the critters disappeared.  

On a stroll

     As the group walked up the easy incline, the route was fairly straight with only a few bushes that forced the the man and his group to go around them.  On the left was a dry creek lined with trees who's roots went deep seeking  water.  On the right, was a sharp drop off which leveled off on it’s way to the main highway.  

     It was very quite and peaceful with the  exception of the leaves being tickling as a  breeze passed by.  Once in a awhile a mountain blue jay would scorn them and warn other well hid critters of our approach.  The critters that usually teased Winston and Lady were also quite.  Maybe they were basking in the late morning sun on a nice warm rock?  

     A bush,  that was slightly larger then most of the others,  stood head high and forced the group to make a new trail around it.  With Winston,  the man started to the right and Lady and the female unit went to the left.Winston’s ears went up.  Only Lady and Winston could hear the high pitch sounds.  The man noticed the alertness of his dogs and became a little apprehensive when Winston poked his nose into the bush.

     EEEEEEEEK!  A loud, high pitched sound that hurt ears came from the creature who's head popped up out of the middle of the bush.  So startled by the event that everyone except Winston jumped back trying to analyze what they were seeing and hearing.  

     The fawn, crying for it’s mother, ran off to the right of Winston.  Winston decided to give chase.  The man watched as Winston ran faster then anytime the man could ever remember.

     The man called out to his friend  but his voice would die in the forest as Winston disappeared after the fawn.  Afraid that Winston would get hurt by running into a protective mother, or losing his way or any number of scenarios that were negative in their context weighed heavily on the man’s mind.

     “I’v lost my dog!”, the man cried out.  You stupid MUTT!  Get back here you dumb dog!”.

     Time seemed to go on forever as the man and his mate waited for Winston’s return.  Lady sat patiently watching toward the area Winston was last seen. Five minutes passed.  Ten more slow minutes crawled by.  The man was very concerned.

     “I”v lost my dog.”, the man said over and over.  “The dumb MUTT!”, the man exclaimed.  One more time the man called out for his friend and companion.  

     Over the hill bounded Winston, his tongue hanging out and panting heavily.  Winston trotted to his master.  The man poured water in a small bowl he carried for his dogs whenever they were thirsty and no water was available.  While Winston drank, the man patted his head and checked him all over for any signs of injury.  Winston seemed quite happy.  After all, he had just saved the group from that creature!

     While walking back to camp, the man heard his mate mumble something.

     “ What was that you said?”  asked the man.

     Oh, nothing really.” she answered.  It’s just that you confirmed what I already suspected.  Winston isn’t a pure bred springer spaniel.” she smiled.  “You called him a MUTT several times today.” 

     A few years later, Lady’s health began to go down hill.  She was dying and the man had to decide when the quality of life was bad enough to put her down.  Another last trip was made to the veterinarian.  Tears ran down the man’s face as he left Lady one last time.  

     Winston, without Lady would lead a more tranquil life.  A puppy was obtained for company when Winston was left  alone.  Named Gingersnap for her color she was a miniature long haired dachshund. 

      The man would take Winston for walks and sit by him, petting his head and talk to him about love, books, movies and various other topics.  Winston always seemed to understand what was being said. 

     Age had begon to slow Winston down.  He took over a recliner that the man used while recovering from a number of surgeries and hospital stays.  This would be Winston’s chair from now on.  Sometimes revered to as Winnie’s throne, he would be comfortable lying there and surveying the front room.  

     The man and his mate had made friends with another couple and began to enjoy each other’s company.  The couples joined a bowling league, played cards, and share a cuisine each had to offer on weekends.  Winston came to know them well and always greeted them with a wag of his tail.

     One day the man received a phone call informing him of a health problem his mother was having.  The problem was serious enough to warrant a trip of eight hours as soon as possible.  Friends would take care of routines involving the house.    Gingersnap would stay at his daughter’s house, but what about Winston?  

     Winston had never been left alone.  He had always been at the man’s side.  The man asked his friends if they would watch Winston.  They agreed but would take Winston to their house.  They would take a few of his favorite toys and some dog bedding.  Assured everything was taken care of, the man and his mate left.

     A few days later the man called his friends to check on Winston and let them know they would be returning the following day.  

     “Well”, the man’s friend said, “he is not pleased being here.  He goes to the front door and cries, wanting to go home.  He follows me every where.  When I go to my office he sits and cries.  He will only stop crying if  I talk to him.  As soon as I turn away, he cries again.  He kept us up most of the night crying.  He wasn’t interested in his toys or any other items we had for him.  

     The man apologized for Winston and promised to pick him up as soon as they got back.  How could we repay them?

     “Oh, don’t worry about that.  He was just lonesome and homesick” his friend said.  “We decided He might need his own bed.  That may be the only way we would get some sleep.  So, we took his recliner from your house and brought it here.  I’m sure your neighbors were watching.”

     “I don’t suppose the cops met you at your door,” the man chuckled.  “And did you finally get some sleep?”

     “Some,”  answered his friend, but he let us know he was still not exactly pleased with the situation.”  

     Later the next day the man picked up a happy dog and his bed.

     Winston began staying in that recliner more and more.  Only to go out  the dog door and relieve himself did he leave the chair.  He showed no pain and was alert to his surroundings.  The man and his mate knew they would soon have to make another decision.                           

     One evening, as the man was home recuperating from his latest hospital stay, found Winston in his chair sleeping.  The man’s mate was at a meeting  and the man was sitting on the floor close to Winston.  Preoccupied with  some household project, the man suddenly realized that Winston was out of his chair.  He was trying to get to the man by crawling and dragging his back legs behind him.  

     The man pulled his faithful friend to his lap and once again, as he had done so many times in the past, held him with the dog’s head in his lap and consoled him.  Winston seemed to relax.  The man, due to his own health problems, could only lift his friend to the chair.  As in the past when Winston was a puppy, the man put his hand  in the dog’s chair and felt Winston snuggle next to it.  He continued to talk to his friend assuring him that the man was still there.  

     When the man’s mate returned they decided they would leave him in his chair since he didn’t seem to be in pain.  They would check on him in the morning with hopes that the problem would resolve itself.  Neither the man nor his mate slept well.  

     Early the next morning,the man, determined  to care for his companion, found enough strength to carry  him to the soft grass in the back yard.  The man set Winston down and, uttering a short prayer, hoped he could stand up. 

     The man moved away and called his friend.  Winston tried to stand but couldn’t.  He tried to get up and come to the man’s voice once again.  He didn’t seem to be in great pain but he couldn’t answer to his master’s voice.  The man’s mate , with tears streaming down her cheeks, picked Winston up and carried him to the car and a short trip to the vet’s office.

     The vet had a couple of options for Winston.  One of them The man and his mate couldn’t afford and at his age was not an option.  Winston would still be paralyzed 

     The only other option was to put him down.  The vet gave Winston a sedative to relax  and sleep.  The vet would return in a few minutes to administer the fatal dose.

     The man’s mate, like the man had done so often, held Winston with his head in her lap and talked soothingly to him.  Winston dosed off and the vet came back into the room.  Winston went peacefully to be with Lady.

     

                                          Post  Script

     As you may have noticed,  after Winston we still had Gingersnap.  Gingersnap”s life was cut short  When she had  a back  go out on her and rendered her paralyzed.  The vet put her down that night.

     Not having a dog in the house for a couple of months convinced us  we needed another dog.  But what breed?  A big dog?  A small dog?  With lots of questions to ponder, we decided on a small dog.  

     Since I had grown up with dachshunds, the decision was made.  For two people in their late to mid sixties, the additional pooch could live for twenty years.  Rough and tumble now meant fetch and tug of war.

     The pair we ended up with were Gidget and Roxie.  Gidget was the first addition, a pie bald long haired  dachshund who needed lots of attention.  We think she is probably ADHD.  At night she ran through the house playing chase with Donna.  My health problems prevented me from joining the fun.  Gidget needed a companion.

     We found another dachshund, a miniature soft wire haired bred.  Her personality was exactly the opposite of Gidget and she is totally mine.  Already these two are beginning to write their dog stories.