“A dog reflects the family life. Whoever saw a frisky dog in a gloomy family, or a sad dog in a happy one? Snarling people have snarling dogs, dangerous people have dangerous ones.” - Arthur Conan Doyle
I suppose you can learn many things about a person from the company that they keep. Who knows what people say about me and the hodge-podge of friends that keep me company . One thing I enjoy, is seeing people with their pets. Some folks are cat folks. Some are lizard folks. Some people are bird people. The type of pet a person keeps can say lots about who they are. I used to be a cat only person but when we moved into our house a few years ago we inherited a very old but very cute little dog.
I never anticipated the amount of pleasure the little mutt would bring to me. Her little wagging tail and wiggly body always lifted my spirits. I looked forward to giving her treats from the fridge and when I called her name she always came running. One of the great things about my fluffy friend was that she seemed almost human-like in her need for companionship and in her ability to cheer me when I was down.
Dogs inspire people everywhere. They listen attentively and with a wag of their tail give us the affirmation we need. This fall I read Shaggy Muses by Maureen Adams. It details the lives of female authors who were assisted and inspired by their canine friends. Emily Dickenson, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Virginia Wolf, Edith Warton and Emily Bronte all relied heavily on their companions. Maureen Adams even seems to have been inspired by a shaggy muse of her own.
Friendly and not so friendly canines have been used for years as a device to develop characters, plot lines, scenery etc. Sometimes entire novels and series are written about the shaggy little beasts. White Fang, Old Yeller, Lassie and Hound of the Baskervilles have become some of the most well known stories and books ever read. They contain dogs that we admire, love and fear.
A tenacious tail-wagger can also give us courage. Jasper, in DuMariur's Rebecca, allows our heroine to wander the grounds at Manderly to discover what she needs to discover. The high-spirited Toto gives Dorothy courage to travel through Oz and face her nemesis, the witch. Charley keeps Steinbeck company through his travels across America. There are so many great literary dogs. I could go on naming them all night.
The first little pup that turned me into a "dog person" has been gone now for 5 years. He's buried underneath a tree in our family's pet cemetery. Today we buried another little dog in the cemetery. My cousin's friend Bennie that has meant so much to her and has been her partner and pal for years. This little blog is for my cousin Andrea and her constant companion Bennie. Because, sometimes a pup can become a really important part of who we are.