Hysteria

I knew that the recent indictment of NFL quarterback Michael Vick on dogfighting charges would renew some kind of nationwide dog hysteria. Over the weekend, I re-read my American Pit Bull Terrier Handbook in preparation for the inevitable pit bull discussions that would pop up - I must be prepared to always defend our favorite breed. This morning, my RSS feeds from the weekend were full of dog-related headlines.

From the New York Times: States Weigh Safety With Dog Owners’ Rights and For ‘Animal Precinct,’ Reality Subject to Dispute.

From The Washington Post: Fallen Star May Cast Shadow on NFL and Va. Bureaucracy Is Foaming at the Mouth Over Dogs.

And do you remember when the pit bull puppy supposedly chewed off the baby's toes back in December? Did you ever hear that the parents actually admitted that the family pet ferret did it, not the six week old pit bull puppy? That part of the story was barely reported.

If there is one thing I wish more people knew about pit bulls, it would be this: Pit bulls are not innately human aggressive dogs. Back in the days when pit bulls were actual pit-fighting dogs and dog fighting was (sadly) a legal and common sport, a dog's human handler would have to get in the fighting ring to tend to the animal's wounds. If a dog bit a human, it would be killed. Human aggressiveness in a pit bull is something that must be bred and socialized into the dog, because it is NOT a natural tendency, and it is actually a relatively new phenomenon.

Vicious

Butch and Ella sharing a blanket.

Letting It Go

Our dog Blue has been missing since May 17 and I still cannot let it go. I still think about her every single day, and I have been dreaming these heart-wrenching dreams where I wake up and expect to find her there beside me in the bed. Why am I so torn up over this?

I have decided to renew my search for one more round, this time posting signs that offer a reward for her return. If I don't find her by the end of June, I will have to let it rest. I will have to make my mind stop conjuring up all these awful situations where she is waiting for me to find her. I will have to be comfortable with not ever knowing what happened to one of my best friends, because really, that's what she was. A constant companion and a best friend.



I was telling my mom about how awful I feel, and this was her reply: "I was walking in the state game lands once and found a dead beagle. It didn't look like it was shot or anything, it just looked like it laid down and died." You might think this is morose, and you might wonder why my mom told me such a fucked-up story when I really didn't need to hear it. But this is my mom's way, always with the gloom and doom.

Karma Dog

Yesterday I saw a scraggly little mutt wandering along a busy road. He was obviously lost and far from home, so I pulled over and coaxed him into the car with my McDonald's Crispy Chicken Snack Wrap. He had tags on his collar but I don't have a cell phone, so I found some guy mowing his lawn and used his cell phone. The dog license official was able to give me the dog owner's name and address.

When I returned the little mutt to his home, the old lady who answered the door said, "Oh, that little shit. Yeah, he's ours," and she shut the door. No happy reunion, no thank you, no offer to let the dog inside, nothing. I rooted around on the porch and found a chain, which I used to anchor the little guy to his home. I even gave him my second McDonald's Crispy Chicken Snack Wrap because I felt bad for him. I wondered if maybe I should offer to take him home with me.

My dogs ran away last Thursday. The following Friday, we got a call from the vet saying that someone had found Free wandering along a very busy road, injured. The kind soul put him in her car and took him to the vet, where he was scanned for his identifying microchip and we were notified. I am so eternally grateful to that kind, anonymous person who cared for my dog, who wasn't afraid of his scary bulk or his serious look, who helped him get back home.

Our second dog, Blue, has yet to be found. She has been gone for 6 days. I woke up this morning crying, missing her warm, sleek little body beside me in the bed. It is our game in the mornings - she waits until she hears Chad start the shower, then she tip-toes past the bathroom door and hops up in the bed with me, where Chad never allow her to be.

Free has been very meticulously burying scraps of food and bones and treats on different parts of the property. When he finds something worth burying, he begins jogging with his eyes trained on the spot where he will dig, clearly on a mission. Chad says that he is burying these treats for Blue, which makes my heart break a little. Animals are funny like that though. My Mom had a beloved horse who died and they buried him on her property. When she was walking past the spot months later with her dog Jack, he laid down on the spot and howled and refused to get up. He knew by some sixth sense that his dead friend Booker T. was buried under that unmarked piece of ground.

My hope for Blue's return dwindles with each passing day, and it kills me to know that I may never discover what happened to her. When I drive down the road that Free was found on, I think to myself, "Blue could be laying injured five feet off the edge of this very road, and I can't find her to help her." This is incredibly rough for me.

It is even more difficult to deal with because I am forced to face my irresponsibility as a pet owner. Blue is not spayed. Blue is not licensed. Blue has no identifying tags on her collar. Blue has no microchip. If someone did find her, I can only hope they would call the Humane Society (who are probably tired of hearing from me at this point) or happen to see one of the gazillion posters I have posted at various gas stations and stores.

Maybe somehow karma will reward me with Blue's return for returning that scraggly little mutt to this home yesterday.

Pack Leader

Ella spent the night at my mom's farm this past Friday. When we went to pick her up on Saturday morning, my mom recounted their time together for us. "I took her in the barn with me to do chores. She wasn't the least bit scared by the cows. Whenever they got too close to her or mooed too loud, she would just point her finger at them and holler with a very serious look on her face."

I cannot tell you how this made me swell with pride. My baby girl, not afraid of any animals! Pointing and hollering just like we do when the dogs get out of line! She's already on her way to becoming the next Dog Whisperer, don't you think?

(Click here to read some helpful thoughts on helping children who are afraid of dogs.)

On Dogs

Tonight I was outside with the dog and her teeth were chattering. I have never, ever seen a dog's teeth chatter before. It was the strangest thing. But it was also very funny because it was involuntary, as shivering and teeth-chattering usually are, and it would catch her by surprise each time.

***

I once read a statistic about how many dogs end up in animal shelters because "We're having a baby." Of course I don't remember the exact numbers, but it was a lot and the fact stuck with me.

I almost did that too - got rid of my dogs because of the pending kid - but I was very picky about who a suitable owner would be and so we never gave them up. We did give one dog to my Dad because he was very nervous and would have completely lost his shit with a baby in the house (the dog, not my Dad). I don't feel too bad about giving him up though, because I still see him nearly every day and my Dad is a very suitable owner.

That leaves us with two dogs and one kid - one dog is male, one dog is female, and both dogs are full-blooded Pit Bulls. (Please, if you'd like to tell me how awful Pit Bulls are, be prepared for a serious argument because I will defend the breed as kind, intelligent, and funny.) (And the kid, she is a female human. Also kind, intelligent, and funny, but I don't expect much of an argument on that.)

I think giving up your dog(s) because you are having a kid is just crazy. Dogs and childhood go together like peanut butter and jelly. Dogs make wonderful companions for children. Already, at 10 months old, Ella likes to play peek-a-boo with Blue, our female. The thing with dogs and kids is that you have to be consistently diligent about supervising their time together, especially in the beginning. You have to create good habits in the dog and in the kid, so their interactions will be well-mannered.

Besides the fact that dogs make good companions, they also make excellent vacuum cleaners. This is probably the most important fact about dogs - they will "sweep" the floor for you, making post-dinner cleanup a lot faster. Free and Blue will find and eat every single tiny little piece of food Ella drops on the floor. I never have to pick up the yucky chunks, and I never have to worry about stepping on a nasty smooshed piece of banana. If it hits the floor, they are on it. (They are not allowed to eat from her hands, though she often tempts them by holding out her cheese- or graham cracker-filled fist. Maybe I should let them lick her hands clean too, so I could avoid the whole fight over wiping her hands and face clean ...?).

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I love how the dogs will move around the kitchen floor to lay in the shifting patches of warm sunlight. I especially love it when they share a warm spot.