Good Boi

I know everyone prolly thinks this, but mine is the best in the world. He takes me along wherever he goes, and we all know that's all any of us want, right? We just want to be with our person. That and treat-os.

If anyone looks at me funny or calls me a mutt he says Hey!

At night, after I go round the yard for a pee-and-bark, he checks my feet. I don't like it, but he says, "easy there, buddy" and when he's done cleaning them with a towel he gives me a treat-o.

After that, we go to bed. He holds up the blanket and I burrow in next to him. I do a biiiiig sigh. He rubs my belly and tells me I'm a good dog. His heart beats and his smell smells and I have a treat-o in my belly and I think this is the best.

"OK, buddy," he says. "Off you get, go on." I hop down on to the cushion on the floor. I do the turning round thing, but it's still not as good as under-the-covers. I wait for his breathing and heartbeat to change, and the room to smell like asleep. Then I hop up on to the end of the bed and go to sleep, too. I keep my nose angled towards the door, in case anyone comes in.

In the morning, he lifts the blanket again and I crawl in. I tuck my head into his shoulder and grunt. Gotta pee, but I gotta cuddle first. When I need to pee real bad, I let him know, and he always listens. He rolls out of bed and lets me out into the yard. When I come in, he's already got my Bowl on the counter. He makes the best Breakfast. I eat it in not many seconds at all.

Here's the thing, whenever he is eating something, he saves me a bit. It's a game we play. All I gotta do is pretend I'm not looking at him eating, and I win. I get the last bite. I chomp it down in two smiling chomps, like this

chomp chomp

and it tastes fantastic, even better than Breakfast. He says, "that's my good buddy", and you know what? That's nearly as good.

I'm not allowed to put my nose in the white powders. But I am allowed to put my teefs in some people. It's another game we play. We have a signal, and if he does the signal, I do the chomp.

We go out for a Walk, and I've got my big boi harness on. He talks to a lot of people. Some of them need a chomp. I watch for the signal. Some need more than that. I'm used to the loud bangs now, and the sharp hot smell they make. And the blood-smell, and the dead-smell.

One night, there was a noise outside. Someone rustling about out there. I could smell them and they smelled shifty. I barked a warning, like, really barked. There was shouting and lights, and someone burst in. My heart was thudding like this thump thump thump thump and I knew my person was in danger.

I didn't even think. I just put myself in between. I was bristling all over, all heart, all thump thump thump, all teefs. I didn't need the signal. I was all ready to chomp.

It wasn't enough. There was too many of them. I was not the goodest boi. They still got to my person. They hurt him, and they took him away. It didn't matter how much I bristled, how much I chomped.

There was more. They had strangling poles and they dragged me away howling. They were rough. They put me in a cell. I don't get the good Breakfast anymore. There's no under-the-covers. No belly rubs. No treat-os. They come and slide my bowl in and walk away. They won't touch me. I'm cold. I'm lonely. These people are mean.

I miss my person. I miss his smell, his warm. He's nice. He calls me "buddy". He gives me treat-os and takes me places. He rubs my ears and my belly. He's the best. I hope he's not dead. I hope one day he comes and says, "hey buddy, let's go" and then we'll go away from here.