A Legacy of Loving Dogs

I have loved dogs for as long as I can remember. We always had dogs growing up and a few other critters such as the obligatory hamster and bird of every family with kids. Do you ever consider where your love of dogs comes from? As far as I know, my dad has always been an animal person and it was something nice that we have always had in common. My mom was a busy stay-at-home-mom so I am guessing here that she’s the one who did all the housebreaking and training, while my dad did all the petting. Dad had a very special dog, a Doberman named Buck who was his best buddy and after Buck died, he never wanted another dog (despite my attempts to change his mind). It would seem that loving and being fascinated with dogs is pretty natural to me.

Several months ago, my parents came for a visit. Every time my dad went out on the patio, Nigel would happily accompany him and either sit on his lap or on the chair next to him and my dad really seemed to enjoy the attention. One evening I was sitting on the floor tossing toys for Divot and my dad was watching her pounce about like a puppy, clearly getting a big kick out of it and in fact got right down on the floor with us to get in on the action – feat not easy for a man of an advanced age! The morning before they were to leave, I had fixed my parents some oatmeal for breakfast and left the kitchen for a few minutes. When I returned, my mother was giving me a look that said, “You’ve got to see this.” There was my dad feeding Nigel and Divot oatmeal off of his spoon. I said, “Dad – don’t feed them from the table.” He laughed like a kid who had been caught doing something he shouldn’t be doing, and continued eating his oatmeal with that same spoon...