dog
It's no coincidence that a dog is a man's best friend; they're more faithful than most other animals, and more faithful than many people.
Mrs Red
Mrs Red By: Steven Dean When I was seven years old, my mom got me my first dog. She was a Pomeranian/ Poodle mix and couldn’t have weighed much more than 10 pounds, if she even weighed that much. Her red hair and pointed snout made her look almost like a fox. The mix of breeds also made her hair not look as puffy as Pomeranians’ normally do, but more like the long smooth hair of a fox. I loved her immediately and we became inseparable. I named her Mrs. Red.
By Steven Dean3 years ago in Petlife
Communication is Key
I’ve seen the videos of dogs who communicate with their people by pushing buttons representing letters or words, and I can relate. I once had a canine companion who was a champion communicator. He never learned to push buttons. At the time, I didn’t know that was a thing. He was a pup who lived by the mantra that actions speak louder than words. I didn’t have a name for his communication style at the time, but I recently read a study in National Geographic that describes it to a T. It’s called referential signaling, a type of gesturing meant to convey a message without using words. Mac was a master at it. I wish I had known about the buttons, though. There were some things that he needed to tell me that would have been easier with words.
By Karen Kamenetsky3 years ago in Petlife
A girl and her pup
Penny Farthing and I have been together just over two years now. We have shared many a wonderful experiences, but the one for discussion is a memory from our drive down to Valdez from Delta Junction. The skies were clear so we could see every mountain top. The temperature was warm enough that I could wear my amazing blue gnome like poncho with only a tank top underneath.
By Just a girl and her pup3 years ago in Petlife
The Danger of Aging with Grace
A dog’s life portrays the nature of time. A young pup bears a crescent moon that waxes into blustery, playful years, and then wanes before us as he ages. To be close to a pet, we become witness to mortality. We are given the lesson of acceptance at the ongoing realization that we have made the choice to bond with a heart that will beat for less minutes, less days, less years than our own. Tender lessons of grief and of growing old are inherent to this relationship. All the while, two souls are tied together by a cosmic cord, which signs an agreement to protect, care for, and love one another without condition.
By Mollie Sheridan 3 years ago in Petlife
Annie Bug Dimples
HE wanted a dog. That is all he spoke about for months was wanting a dog that he could have while being an “up & coming bodybuilder.” Which translated to him being buff and unemployed. Meanwhile, I worked two jobs- often having 13 hour days of straight work- and I did not have the time or energy to support us, let alone a dog. Over time, he pushed for a dog and I was too tired to fight it, so I gave in. My only condition was that I got to pick out the dog. I thought to myself, “Maybe a dog will help distract him. Maybe a dog will ease his rising anger. Maybe a dog will make him a better person”. Looking back, I was so naïve.
By Neeha Goswami 3 years ago in Petlife
The Leo Marco Chronicles, Part I
I used to be terrified of dogs. I wasn't even bit as a child, but I always had some fear that I would be. Our family's first dog had not been spared from my, well, "aversion." So I had my regrets when he died — sure, I'd been much younger (and irresponsible) then, but looking back, I could've done more in raising him.
By Marie Sinadjan3 years ago in Petlife
Staying Afloat
My yearning for the ocean ebbed and flowed like the tide. Some days, I wanted nothing more than to be immersed by the sea, as this felt like my natural state of being. Other days, I wanted to move far far away and never look back because I feared my favorite place on Earth would become nothing but a bitter reminder of my father’s absence.
By Isla Kaye Thistle3 years ago in Petlife
I Carry Your Heart With Me
I felt a deep yearning for the companionship of a dog. Shortly before the shit-storm that was the pandemic, I had a mental breakdown. Not in the sudden sort of way you see in movies. It had been a slug of a breakdown. You sort of convince yourself its not happening for a while—that you’re the same person you used to be before you had panic attacks. I am not an anxious person. That’s what I would tell myself after I got into bed for the third time in ten minutes (I had to check the doors again of course. This time with the lights on. Then off again. Then I’d have to feel the handle three times to make sure the lock was down. Even then I wasn’t sure.)
By Jess McCallops3 years ago in Petlife
Jesse
This is a story about true love, and for a while, I avoided telling it because the ending was too sad for me to bear. That sadness makes me fearful; I cannot help but dread another loss well before it comes onto the horizon. It is like tonguing a loose tooth that wasn’t loose until you started pushing at it. But I have indulged my selective amnesia for too long: Jesse expected more of me and showed me how to demand more of myself. And the truth is that his death, which came so much sooner than I was prepared for, isn’t even close to the end of this story.
By Merry Zide3 years ago in Petlife
Astronaut Dog
All mornings started the same. I’d open my eyes very annoyed at the sound of our old rusty coffee grinder. Of course my partner always forgot to close the door behind him. I would then toss and turn around as I’d ignored the sunlight coming through the half open blinds. My side of the sheets always popped out during the night because I was a broke graduate student, way too stubborn to admit that I wrongfully ordered a full size sheet to our second hand queen size bed and of course I wasn’t going to pay for another one. I would then continue on to pretend I was comfortable as I had to convince myself that I can go back to sleep before my alarm went on, but obviously I would hold my breath and obsessively look at my phone, almost dare I say- begging it to scream that horribly loud sound so that I can finally lower my chest. And when the air finally came out it would feel as if I just got out of a very nauseating roller coaster ride. I guess anxiety can do that to you.
By Arsal Asal3 years ago in Petlife
