As I write, my dog is asleep in front of the fire, her rump resting on my feet. She’s a very affectionate dog, and she loves the human contact. She is a loyal, friendly, loving bag of empathy. She loves people, adores children, likes playing hide and seek, but occasionally doesn’t like other dogs. She’s a “people dog”.
And yet, although I have always loved dogs, I really had to be persuaded to take the plunge again. Phrases like “I’m not sure that I want the tie”, seemed to escape unchecked from my mouth.
However, when I thought more about it, I realised that many things that were usually worthwhile were also a tie: marriage, a partner, children, a steady job, friends…
There is no doubt in my mind that I was pressured by my recently retired husband and my son who was trying to navigate a harsh world fresh from university – but I gradually became open to the idea.
I think that what initially deterred me was our first dog-owning experiences in our twenties (you know, that time of life when you think that you know everything, when in fact you know almost nothing).
Back in those “good old days” according to my husband, when I was much more amenable, I agreed to go along with him to choose an Alsatian bitch from Battersea Dog’s Home because I was going to be at home all day with a baby. What was I going to do with myself “For God’s Sake” with just a baby at home? I’d have so much time on my hands to have a dog (or why not two?) whilst I was looking after this baby!
I’d just like to confirm that miraculously, my husband is still alive – I didn’t murder him. (I was too busy looking after dogs and a baby).
We had recently moved to Kent after teaching in London and a pupil that we knew had a girlfriend who worked in Battersea Dog’s Home. We knew nothing about dogs, except that we thought we would like one.
Clueless?
(Completely.)
We went along to Battersea Dog’s Home, with said pupil, and we carefully chose a very sweet, timid German Shepherd female puppy. Our pupil friend was emphatic that he knew exactly which dog we had chosen. He would collect it the following week and bring the lovely little female puppy on the train to our house in Kent.
The day arrived when he was due to come with the dog. We watched through the upstairs window, waiting for him to appear down the road with the puppy in tow. He suddenly appeared in view, with a skinny brown dog on a lead beside him.
Was this the same dog?
Was this a German Shepherd?
Was this a female?
No, no, and no.
In fact, this particular “bitch puppy” was very well endowed with male genitalia. It was also a whippet.
This dog, we later discovered, was the Casanova of the dog world. Not only that, but we also discovered that he could escape through a very narrow chink in the door when you were talking to the milkman in the early morning (this was the “olden days” when we had milkmen). Due to the fact that it was early in the morning and I was in my dressing gown I couldn’t chase after the dog as it rampaged through the neighbourhood.
After a few nightmare months we found a new mature lady owner who adopted the dog and dressed this savvy “Casanova street dog” in a dog coat and wisely never let him off the lead.
We also had a genuine German Shepherd dog all those years ago, too, making many – but fewer – mistakes because unfortunately we were still learning.
It’s certainly difficult to combine a working life with a dog, because having a dog is like having an extra child. It needs food, stimulation, love, and companionship, but at least you won’t lie awake at night worrying about which school to send it to, or how on earth you’ll manage to afford to send her/him to university. You also won’t worry who it’s going out with at night either.
Instead, you’ll have a loyal friend who will love you and always want to be with you when other people might not; it will also insist that you take it for walks every day, believe me, otherwise you’d never go (would you?). A dog is the only member of the family who will love you unconditionally. And if that’s not a reason to love them, I don’t know what is.
