Yesterday, as I made my appointed rounds,I drove by a nursing home and I spied an old geezer riding his motorized wheelchair along a sidewalk, with his dog on a leash running ahead of him. Now I am sure you have all heard about the studies that show people with pets live longer, happier lives, but I want to put in a word for dogs as being very special.
Dogs were apparently bred from wolves way back in time. From that time, they have been mankind's special friends, guarding the camps, helping on the hunt,and just being a companion. Some tribes even used them for food, occasionally. Let's not go there.
There are all kinds sizes and shapes of dogs. There are great huge dogs like an Irish Wolfhound or Great Dane all the way down to Chihuahuas and Yorkies. A dog is there for any taste or personality.
My dog is an English (Llewellyn) Setter, and she is just perfect...for me. She is a constant companion, following me everywhere I go when I am at home.
She is a hunter. She spends the evening hours when I am sitting on the back patio hunting constantly all around the yard. For anything: birds, bees, butterflies, anything that moves. She will go into a point when birds arrive on the fence or the bird bath. If they are close to the ground and stay put very long, she will stalk them. It's fun to watch, except sometimes she will actually catch a bird, whereupon she will proudly bring it in to show us. It's just a natural thing to do for her. I had to take down the bird feeder permanently because of that.
She is also a guard dog, barking loudly and viciously at anyone who dares walk by our house. Particularly at first light in the morning, when the neighbors are taking a walk. Of course, she would not bite anybody, but her bark sure doesn't give any such indication. Can't say that about a Yorkie, that's for sure.
She is a very sweet affectionate dog, and my bride and I cannot imagine what we would do to change her to make her better. That is just the effect that a good dog has on you. Everyone that can should have at least one.
Last, but not least, there is one thing one can say about his or her dog, that cannot be said about any other creature:
Your dog will love you, without reservation, no matter what you do.
Try that on a cat.
