A dog ponders his existence

Something my dog wrote.

I am a dog.  More specifically, I am a Boston terrier.  I am roughly 20 lbs, and my weight is pretty steady.  I’m very lean, strong, and have a lot of spring in my legs.  The guy I live with always holds things up by his chest, like little, brown pieces of food (they’re delicious, my favorite!) and my toys, so that he can show how high I can jump.  I think he takes it as a positive attribute for himself, like the higher I jump, the cooler he is.  I couldn’t explain that, it’s just a feeling I get.  Personally, I like to jump and I like to eat and chew on things, so I keep doing it.  I like him well enough.  He pets me and lets me sleep under the covers in his bed, which I dig because it is warm and I like to cuddle.  Every morning he puts me in this cage, locks it, and then leaves.  He’s gone all day.  He says things to me, probably telling me where he’s going, but I don’t understand.  I mostly crash during the day when I’m by myself.  He put a nice brown, fleece blanket in my crate, so I’ve really got no complaints there.  Every evening he comes home and lets me out first thing.  I usually make a lot of noise when I hear his car because I get extremely excited to know I’m getting out the kennel.  I’ve got a backyard I can run around in and it’s a pretty good size, so I get my exercise.  My food’s pretty good, and I’ve always got fresh water.  He feeds me some of the stuff he eats, which is always better than my food.  I guess I’ve been staying with him about four years.  I don’t know where he was before I met him, or what his life was like, but I like to think that it’s better now.  He’s really loving and likes to have me around.  I like being around him.  It’s the most significant relationship in my life.  My contact with other animals is pretty much limited to seeing them through the window or the front door.  I get very territorial and vocal when I see dogs walk past my house.  It’s something I’m working on, but everyone has flaws. 

 

He’s got this girl that’s been coming around about half a year, and she spends a lot of time at his place.  She’s really nice and I like to think she comes over to see me just as much as she does him.  She gives me a lot of baby talk and feeds me more than he does.  She goes to bed earlier, so I’ll alternate back-and-forth between being in bed with her and in the living room or office with him.  I kind of feel like it’s my duty to keep an eye on them and make sure everything’s cool.  They're the closest thing I’ve ever had to parents.  My real mother and father never married.  My dad split before I was even born and my mom adopted out me and my nine brothers and sisters.  And they say no one has big families anymore!  I lived with some other people a long time ago, but spent some time on the streets before these people found me and brought me to St. Louis.  I’m originally from South Boston.  I’m a pretty gritty kid, and did what I had to to survive on the streets.  Some of the things I’m not proud of, but you shouldn’t judge me unless you’ve been where I have.  It was a hard time and I don’t like to talk about it much.  I lost my right eye fending off two larger dogs that were after some ribeye scraps I’d begged off a restaurateur.  I do okay with my left, but it’s nice to live in a house again.  Things are actually pretty great.  People amuse me; they get so hung up on the pettiest things.  I personally take pleasure in the simplest things—lying in a sunbeam that comes through the glass front door, eating the meager scraps that are given to me, and cuddling with my people.  I would say that, emotionally, I’m pretty even, although maybe a little on the nervous side.  I’ve heard this is normal for terriers, though.  Nothing that requires medication.  I hate cold weather and having to s**t in front of people can be a little humiliating, so I appreciate it when they turn their heads.  One of my absolute favorite things in the world is to go for rides in the car.  Sometimes we stay over at the girl’s place.  I’m cool with that because I get to ride in the car both ways and crash in her bed.  Life is truly pretty good.  I recently went to Georgia to visit the girl’s nephew, so that was ten hours in the car each way.  It was awesome, although the baby looked like an old man and couldn’t talk.  And on the anniversary of the day I came to live with him, the guy and girl gave me a whole cupcake.  I didn’t even know how to approach it, but it was awesome.  Never had a sugar rush like it before or since.  I’m not really sure where I fit in in the grand scheme of things, but it doesn’t much matter to me.  I take every day one moment at a time and enjoy things that are right in front of me.  I think more people need to learn that lesson. 

Sincerely,

Petey    

Reviews

[Writer CW Kirkland]

I really enjoyed reading this doggy narrative because I am a dog-lover too. I have three dogs - each with distinct personalities. I think you did a good job explaining Petey's thoughts and emotions, and we learned some things about you as well. It is a great casual essay, and it is easy for readers to follow along. My only suggestion is to break it up into more than two paragraphs for the benefit of the readers. Thank you for sharing Petey's tale with us, and I look forward to reading more of your writing in the future.