My Dog Dub

If you don't own a dog, at least one, there is not necessarily anything wrong with you, but there may be something wrong with your life. ~Roger Caras 

I lost my dog, Dub, last year before Christmas. He was a very good dog. A chocolate lab registered by his first owners as Coffee W. Crutcher. Those owners got more dog than they bargained for with a lab puppy and he soon found himself chained to a dog house in their yard. Enter my friend, Carolyn. A dog lover like me. A very tender-hearted dog lover. She sees the lab and imagines his life of confinement and offers to take the dog from the owners. They agreed and Coffee W. Crutcher began the next chapter of his life.

Carolyn took him to the vet, did all the necessary things to keep him healthy, loved him, but she lived in town and had a small, unfenced yard. He had too much dog energy for that small space. Enter my wide open farm and the fact that I was down to only one dog. So it was great timing. Coffee W. Crutcher came to live with us here on the farm along with his registration papers, his dog house, his dog dish and his extra heavy duty dog chain and leash. 

So, Coffee W. Crutcher began another new chapter in his life and found a permanent home. He was a dog with energy. The first time I tried to take him for a walk on his leash, just as a training exercise, I ended up being dragged through a briar patch. Next walk we used a choke collar. He was a strong dog and just a little hard-headed. So much so that yelling Coffee didn't penetrate his ears. He didn't even so much as turn his head to see if there was any possibility I might mean him. Crutcher didn't work either, but Dub - short for W - that he could hear.  So this beautiful chocolate lab with the very distinctive name became my dog, Dub. 

Well, as much as he ever became anybody's dog. He was always an independent soul. He liked me. Walked with me every day. At times he'd sit down and patiently wait for me as he's doing in the picture above. He liked going swimming and rarely passed up the opportunity to take a dip in a pond or creek or plop down in a mud puddle. He was a retriever who would not fetch. If I threw a stick or ball, he'd just look at me as if to say, you threw it; you go get it. He had a good appetite. Ate his dog food and supplemented his calorie intake by killing the occasional unlucky rabbit or squirrel. Once some wild ducks hatched out around our pond. Dub waited until the ducks were about half grown before he swam out and "retrieved" one of them as a tasty snack. Then he went out and got the others, one by one. Not a good place for ducks on Dub's pond.  

Other dogs loved him. My yard became the gathering place for all the neighbor dogs. They came to lay beside Dub. Or on top Dub. They loved Dub. He'd been to the vet to be neutered before he came to live here on the farm, but the surgery must not have been a complete success. He didn't go chasing after the female dogs, but they came to our yard after him. When that happened, he couldn't resist the siren call. I put him up when I knew what was happening, but sometimes he was gone before I knew the girls had come after him. I never knew for sure if any of the pups were his because there were other male dogs around, but one time when there was an American Staffordshire in the neighborhood, I was pretty sure that the one pup she had was Dub's. She wouldn't entertain attentions from any of the other dogs. Another time he went off with a different neighborhood flirt and ended up several miles from home next to a parkway where somebody stopped, gathered him up and turned him in to the humane shelter. It was a holiday weekend and I didn't figure out he was gone until too late to call. He spent the weekend in doggie jail before I could find out they had him and bail him out on Monday. He was happy to be my dog that morning. 

So many stories I could tell about Dub. How he developed an allergy and was tormented by itching in the spring and fall until we had to give him steroids. How he liked to go sleep on the neighbor's porch furniture. How every bed I bought him he slept on for a few days and then attacked like it was a wild animal and spread filling all over the yard. How when he was beginning to get old and tired, he'd go to the middle of the field where he could watch me walking to lie down and wait for me to come back around. How he had to wear one of those collars after he had surgery on his ear. How if he thought he was going to the vet, he just came to the car and climbed right in. Never tried to get in the car any other time. How he was a very good dog. 

In December, he got very sick. I knew he was dying and went out to the garage to check on him on a morning in December thinking I'd have to take him to the vet for that final trip. He wasn't there. He wasn't anywhere. I walked miles on the farm looking for him in every fence row, under every cedar bush, and under buildings and everywhere I could think of. He wasn't anywhere. I was about to decide he'd walked on up to heaven, but then a few days later, the neighbor came over to report he'd found him next to his pond. I should have walked his field instead of mine. So now Dub's buried out by the gate we passed through so often on our walks. You want to outlive your dogs because dogs are only here a short time. But at the same time you remember every one them. Good dogs all. And Dub was a good dog who had a good life here on the farm. 

 

Have you known some good dogs in your life?

A dog doesn't care if you're rich or poor, big or small, young or old. He doesn't care if you're not smart, not popular, not a good joke-teller, not the best athlete, nor the best-looking person. To your dog, you are the greatest, the smartest, the nicest human being who was ever born. You are his friend and protector.  ~ Louis Saban

Remember, you can get your name in the hat to win a copy of my new book, Words Spoken True, by leaving a comment here. This giveaway is just for my blog followers. Each comment on a new post enters your name again. So thanks for reading and I hope you have a great week.

Book Talks and Dub's in Trouble Again

Here I am with the Butler County Librarian, Kenna, after my booktalk yesterday in Morgantown. I appreciated those who were able to come and hope they enjoyed hearing about how I started writing and kept on writing. Sometimes the kept on part is harder than the start part. But perseverance generally pays off and it has for me since I now have books to talk about to readers.

-I love libraries. I owe a lot of my own reading education to my hometown library and then when I started writing there was a wonderful librarian here in Anderson County named Ann McWilliams who always went out of her way to help me find whatever research material I needed for my historical novels. She was the best and in large part because of her energy and drive we have the beautiful library we have today that is dedicated to her memory. I was in our library this afternoon to return an audio book and the place was hopping. Almost every computer was busy and there were even some people looking at books. At the Butler County Library, Kenna says the inspirational fiction is very popular and that the library patrons are reading my books, too. That's always music to a writer's ears.

-Well, poor Dub is in doggie jail again. Not the pound this time, thank goodness. This time the doggie jail is our basement. And he's there through no real fault of his own. He has itching problems and in trying to scratch his itch, he did something to his ear that made it swell up. The vet had to cut it open and drain it out. So now the poor old dog has on one of those Elizabethian (or as someone else said satellite dish) collars and he's not a happy puppy. He keeps looking at me as if to ask why I'm torturing him like this. And it's also torture for him to be confined. He's a farm dog. He's used to being out there smelling all the smells and watching the deer eat the apples off the tree. He doesn't bother the deer. He just watches and hopes they'll leave one of the apples for him. He's going to have a long three weeks.

-Next week is going to be very busy around here. I've got another book talk on Tuesday. They'll have to be polite and listen to me that day since it's my birthday. (And by the way, that's the day I'm drawing for the winner of my giveaway - two books to some lucky winner for my birthday. So you've got one more day to put your name in the drawing.) But we're also going to be at the National Quartet Convention in Louisville every day. If you're there come by the Patriots' booth and say hello. Their booth is in aisle ten or eleven. It's more fun if people stop and talk and I'll have my books there if anybody wants my autograph. Then next Sunday I'm hosting my family reunion. My daughter and her husband are coming in and maybe my son and his family so I might get to see the WV grandbabies.

-On top of all that, this is the week they announce the winners of the ACFW books of the year in Denver. I'm not going to be in Denver, but I'll be represented there by my agent just in case the unexpected happens and they announce Summer of Joy as winner of the long contemporary novel category. That would really be neat. But it's already neat that my book was a finalist. I did really enjoy writing my Hollyhill books and it's a blessing that readers have taken my Hollyhill characters to heart and enjoyed those stories as well as my Shaker stories.

- Oh yeah, and today is Grandparents Day. One of the kids at church asked what treat I'd bought to recognize the grandparents the way we do the Moms and Dads on Mother's Day and Father's Day. I told her grandparents didn't need a treat. They already had the best treat anybody could have - grandkids. I put this quote in the church bulletin today. "What a bargan grandchildren are! We give them our loose change, and they give us a million dollars worth of pleasure!" I don't know who said it, but I know a lot of grandparents who might have. Hope if you're a grandparent you have fun with your grandkids this week or maybe if you have a grandparent you had fun with them.

Happy Wednesday - Dub made bail!

I bailed my big old chocolate Lab out of doggie jail on Monday. Somebody had picked him up on Thursday and turned him into the animal shelter, but I couldn't get any answer at the shelter until Monday because of the holiday weekend. Poor old dog had to sit in that cage all weekend. I have his tags, but had neglected to put them on his collar. You can believe they're on there now. As soon as I drove up to the shelter I could hear Dub barking. He must have recognized the car and was he ever glad to see me. I'm hoping he'll stay down on the farm now. The neighbor bailed his dogs out too though it gets expensive after a few days in doggie jail. So very glad to have the old dog stretched out on the porch again even if he does need a bath.

I have to apologize to all of you who entered my book giveaway. I said I'd announce the first winner of an autographed copy of The Believer last Sunday, but I guess all the fireworks and missing dog addled my brain. However I have now drawn for the first week's winner and that is (drumroll please) Jeneen. I'll be contacting Jeneen to get her address to send the book when I get my copies. I haven't received a copy yet, but I learned last time with The Outsider not to get too anxious. With that book, I saw copies in the store before I had any in hand. Not a bad thing. I like seeing copies in stores and in other people's hands as they read. I'll draw for the next winner Sunday - if my brain isn't too addled from playing with grandbabies this weekend. I'm going to WV to babysit that set of grandkids. We'll have fun and Grandma will be busy.

I'm still doing those yucky housecleaning chores. Painted all day Monday and Tuesday till eleven in the night. Had to take a break on Monday to go bail out the dog and on Tuesday to go to the dentist. I almost looked forward to that since I figured lying back in a dentist chair would give me a few minutes rest. Of course they stand you on your head these days and then try to carry on a conversation with you. There you are practically standing on your head with blood rushing down (or would that be up) into your head along with having two hands poking around in your mouth. It's "aah, ogg, splutter" when you try to answer. Anyway came home and had to pick up the paint roller again. I'm definitely developing muscles in that arm. Sore muscles.

But today, I decided I'd better take a break if I was going to be able to keep up with the grandkids the rest of the week. The hometown grandkids came out to pick zuchinni and peppers out of their part of the garden. They're so cute out there among the rows of veggie plants that I need to take my camera out there and snap some photos to add to the hundred or two I already have on my camera. Do any of the rest of you have that problem? Just adding to your memory card and putting off downloading or printing them? I'll have to take my sleeping bag to Wal-Mart when I decide to get the pictures printed off.

Just a few more weeks until I'll be doing my booklaunch at Shaker Village. Corinth Bookstore in Frankfort is selling the tickets and say they're getting some calls. Hope those of you in the area can come join in the fun. The tickets are for the breakfast. You can check out the details on my webpage in the schedule part on the Home page. Also thanks to any of you who may have befriended me on Facebook and Goodreads. It's good to have new friends and to get reacquainted with some old friends.

Hope you're enjoying lots of great photo ops this summer.

Dub is Missing

Not a happy Sunday. My big old chocolate lab is missing from the farm. A little neighbor dog came courting and although Dub is supposed to be neutered, he still gets interested in the females when they come calling and he must have gone off with her. I had planned to put him up before that happened, but I was too slow about putting him in the basement. And now he's been gone four days. We've ridden around the road, called all the neighbors, whistled and yelled his name to no avail. Two other dogs in the neighborhood disappeared along with Dub and the female dog. All are still missing. I haven't been able to call the Animal Control because of the holiday weekend. But unless they got picked up I'm afraid my sweet old Dub may have come to a bad end. Poor old dog. I miss him stretched out on the back porch. He has a way of stretching out and sleeping that have had two or three people see him sleeping and call to tell me he's dead. But he just knew how to relax big time.

He was a faithful walking companion even the last few months when he hasn't felt well. He'd get way behind when we were walking and I'd have to figure out a way to casually wait for him so he wouldn't be embarrassed about getting so far behind. Dogs can get embarrassed, you know. One time a neighbor gave his little dog a buzz haircut and the dog wouldn't come out from under the car. I've had bad hair days like that. How about you? Of course I didn't hide under the car, just felt like it. Anyway I'm missing Dub today. Still hoping he'll find his way home, but worried that he can't. I don't know anywhere else to look. Thank goodness my other dog, Oscar didn't go off with them, but he's been lonely.

Enough blues about my dog. I know some of you out there will understand, but others of you might think it's silly to get the blues over a dog. Guess you haven't had a dog look at you with those big eyes as if you're the most important thing in his life. Dogs don't care if you're having a bad hair day. Dogs don't care what you look like. When you belong to them, you're the most beautiful person in the world in their eyes.

That's the way our families are, too. And maybe even our church families. We might see the faults and even point them out (That's where dogs are better than us. They just ignore those faults and love us without reservation.) But our families are the most beautiful people in the world to us and the ones we most want to see. Still, we sometimes take our families for granted and treat strangers we don't even know with more kindness than we do those people we love best.

Hope you had fun with your family this weekend. The neighbor put on a great fireworks show last night right over top our yard. All around us in the distance I could hear the boom of more fireworks shooting off. Oohs and aahhs all around. Celebrating freedom.

Hope you have a good week. And thanks to all who befriended me on Facebook and Goodreads. And for those of you who follow this blog. You're the best.