Sweet

Most of my life I wondered why dogs were referred to as �man�s best friend.� Canine companions--barking, smelly, hole-digging, drool machines--what good were they? What kind of a person would allow a dog to set up residence at their owner�s feet or occupy a place of honor in the family vehicle? The relationship between people and dogs was incomprehensible to me, and it was a situation I fully intended to avoid.

I believe I am a fair person and, when the approach of my daughter�s eighth birthday coincided with the death of her cat, I put my personal feelings aside and surprised her with a puppy. I carefully and objectively considered the situation and was confident I could tolerate a dog for the sake of my child. Amazingly, what was meant to be my daughter�s dog has become my favorite pet and, with each passing day, I love this animal more than I dreamed possible.

This canine ruined the carpet, chewed the corners off our coffee table, stripped the siding from the garage, devoured countless shoes, shredded my favorite chair, destroyed the backyard and left me in financial ruin, but she has undeniably won a place in my heart. I jokingly threaten to shoot her every day or two, and when I repeatedly ask myself what it is about this creature that makes her so special, I find there are no easy answers.

I was steadfast in my resolve to settle for nothing less than a purebred dog. After much research and consultation with experts, I made the decision to acquire a Labrador retriever. Labs rank number one in popularity and make great family pets and excellent companions for children. They are intelligent, gentle, affectionate, easily trainable and loyal. We assigned the name Dutchess Mocha Cinnamon Star to our dog and proudly filed her AKC registration papers with our other important documents.

These papers lost their importance when it was determined that Chocolate (our shortened version of Dutchess Mocha Cinnamon Star) is half Doberman, and the emphasis I placed on a dog�s purebred qualities seems unimportant now. Chocolate is a remarkably good-looking dog, and the Doberman breeding has endowed her with an extra measure of protectiveness which I find endearing. Dobermans and Labs are very similar in personality and size, and they both make great pets, so I�m content to be the co-owner of a �Labradobe.�

Chocolate is a year and a half old and has endured some major medical problems. At the age of six months she had a needle surgically removed from her stomach and less than three months later came close to dying from an intestinal obstruction. Chocolate suffers from an assortment of allergies and will be dependent upon various medications throughout her entire life. Her allergic reactions range from mild to life-threatening and are in response to spring grasses, flowering trees, sutures, bee stings, flea bites, distemper vaccinations and various dog food additives. She is restricted to Science Diet dog food and has a grocery bill of one hundred dollars a month, and thus far her medical expenses have come extremely close to exceeding my assets.

Chocolate has more personality than some people I know. The veterinarian describes her human qualities as �almost spooky� and, personally, I sometimes feel our household has evolved into an animated comic strip. Chocolate snores, chews her nails and belches loudly after meals. She considers all bath water an open invitation to a pool party and even has her own bathrobe. This furry four-legged �human� prefers to sleep with her head on a pillow and drags a stuffed animal around at bedtime.

Chocolate is a communication expert and has the most expressive body language I have ever seen. She makes full use of her tail and eyes, while vocally expressing her feelings with a series of grunts, groans and barks. Chocolate lets me know, by wagging her tail and placing a paw on the front doorknob, that one of the cats wants to come in the house. When she needs to relieve herself, she stands motionless at the back door, and if she wants to go outside to play she does a dance and nudges the door with her nose. Chocolate does not hesitate to show her affection and once jumped through the bedroom window to greet me as I returned home from work. I have yet to find any human companions this uninhibited in their declaration of love for me.

I no longer worry about my alarm clock malfunctioning in the morning, because Monday through Friday at 6:30 sharp, Chocolate drags my blankets off the bed and gives my face a lick bath. My daughter is dismissed from school at 2:30, and on school days Chocolate drags her leash to me at 2:20 in anticipation of a car ride. Whether she is a creature of habit, a highly intelligent animal or both, there is no doubt her sense of time is incredible.

Squirrels and rabbits no longer ravage my garden, and I feel safe leaving my daughter home alone for short periods of time. When strangers approach the house, our ninety pound marshmallow transforms herself into a vicious-looking guard dog. In actuality, Chocolate uses her teeth only to eat and play tug-of-war, but appearances can be deceiving, and I find this deception very charming and rewarding.

Chocolate is a wonderful companion for my daughter, and Nicole has trained Chocolate to come, stay, sit, heel, lay down, roll over and catch, while Chocolate has taught Nicole a great deal about patience and responsibility. In the winter, we harness Chocolate to a sled, and she transports Nicole through the snow, while in the summer Chocolate serves as a swimming companion. Chocolate joins us for vacations and holiday festivities, and we celebrate her birthday with a party, because she has become so much a part of our lives it would be inconceivable to not treat her as a member of the family.

I�m sure Chocolate is a worthless mutt in the eyes of most people, but her gentleness, loyalty, intelligence, protectiveness and affectionate nature make her priceless to me. My friends, parents and neighbors see Chocolate leading me down the bankruptcy trail and continually say to me, �What are you going to do with that dog?� I answer them the only way I can -- I tell them I�m going to love her until she dies.

Hopefully Dutchess Mocha Cinnamon Star will live a long time because she is an outstanding dog, and life would not be the same without her. I finally understand the peculiarities of dog lovers and will be the first to admit Chocolate is definitely a �(wo)man�s best friend.�
Copyright 1994 Skunk River Review

Had I only known . . . I will love her not just until the day she dies, but until the end of time.
Cindy
May, 2001