The Three Buddies and the Spoiled Terrier
At my retirement from teaching in the secondary education of La Salle Academy, I have come to be deeply closed to my three buddies and a spoiled poodle-mix terrier at home. They gave me company and I feel their happiness being with me the whole day. These buddies are my house security guards who were of a different mixed-breed canine. Adding to them in my security force is a visiting poodle who insisted to stay with me in the house after a week-end visit by her master to us.
When I was still teaching, my buddies seldom saw me at home on weekdays as I was in school teaching and went home late in the night only to rest. Most Saturdays, I would still be in school for the training of my Dramatics group, the Publication Staff, and my Chess team. On Sundays, if I opt not to be in the early morning mass, I may gave them their bathe and shower. But, most often, our house helper do this task for them. If I attend mass early, I used to proceed to the malls, after the mass to buy materials necessary for my teaching activities. I set these things and prepare it for the ready use of my weeklong teaching activity. In the afternoon, I watched movies and be home late. I can see their great joy to welcome me every time I arrived home.
Now that I have retired, their joy was doubly great as I took care of their needs. I personally fed them their food and freed from the chains. I constructed kennels made of cool bamboo strips which they loved to recline and rest. They stayed permanently to the cubicle assigned to them. They understood my communication and responded accurately to what I desired for them to do. They returned and gave me back the ball I threw or chased astray cats that prey on our pigeons and ducks.
At about fiesta time in Iligan City, my grandniece in Fuentes, Iligan City dropped me a visit bringing with her a newly purchased dog. This female canine looked so beautiful with her creamy white fur neatly combed by her new masters. She was so snob that doesn’t want to make friends with any of my buddies. She screamed and barked at anybody that gets near to her. Later, she became friends with the youngest of my buddies and they became playmates in rolling the ball and chasing the cats. My grandniece noticed that she seemed reluctant to go with her as they are about to return home to Fuentes, Iligan City. Her husband, who noticed the reluctance, suggested that she be left to have her enough time to play with her new found friend where she learned tricks of chasing cats or scaring feline to death. They learned this trade from the eldest of my best buddies at home. Let me introduce them by their names.
The eldest is Bernie, a cross of a Pit bull and a Rottweiler .Actually, we named him Brownie because of his dominant brown fur colors. But most kids at home mispronounced his name into Bernie where he politely responds. That’show he got his new and popular name –Bernie.
Bernie is the most intelligent among my buddies at home. He learned his tricks and trade from the elder buddies that stayed with us ahead of him. He has witnessed the death and tragedies of his elder buddies that made him cautious and careful when strolling along the highway. He would avoid white van type of car, owned by the city government impounders. He had a traumatic experience from these impounders , when once they raided our barangay. He was caught and placed inside the van together with other astray dogs. One dog owner got mad and opened the van as he challenged the impounders to a fight. After a heated exchange of words, a great brawl happened that made all dogs, including Bernie, find their way to exit and ran for their freedom. As a Pit bull, he fights bravely and knows how to scare enemies to death with his wrinkled forehead and protruding pair of eyes with a matching eye bags on his face.
The next buddy is Mitzie. He was named after a Japanese passenger vehicle car we used to have. This vehicle car model is Mitsubishi which most of our dogs before used to take shelter when it is no longer operating and showed dilapidation. Mitzie is just his nickname. He is a cross of a Japanese Spitz and a Golden Retriever and by parental history he got a Dalmatian foreparent. His right point finger and his right thumb seemed cut off and according to his first owner, that was already part of his freak birth. Mitzie is lovely and adorable. He behaves well and follows instructions accurately. He seem to have a high intelligence quotient.
The youngest of my buddies is Worchester, a mix of an English golden retriever and a Japanese spitz. He is worst as to behavior and seem to have a low I.Q. We call him Worshie and it seems he loved his name. He stayed with us for about five months already but seem to have not understood an instruction. When I am about to feed them, he will cross my path that I can not have my way to go or move forward. I have to shout at him so that he would clear my way. If I am not quick enough to avoid his trick, I would surely fall to the ground. He did that even to cars on the highway. He would suddenly block his body and the cars would have a sudden stop to spare his life to the thrill of the street by-standers who reported this case to me. I permanently locked the gates so he could not have the chance to go outside to the highway. One evening, he escaped and crossed the street. A rushing SUV bumped on him. He rolled yelping inside the car in between the tires, but when he was out of the SUV a rushing motorcycle bumped and run-over his hind limbs. My poor canine was thrown to the other side of the street and could no longer stand. We gave him a doze of pain killer and fed him with meat and milk to recover fast. After three days he can already move and run with a limping left leg.
Scarlett is the poodle-mix terrier who stayed in my house during week-ends only. She is a mix of a Terrier and a poodle. Her being a poodle is being dominant as she loved wearing ribbons and prefer to be displayed in the family living room. She doesn’t stay in the gangs kennel but instead slept in my own room or be carried by anybody at home. Her only playmate is Worshie and they are very careful not to destroy our Christmas tree and Christmas balls. She is scared to be yelled at. One time she was brought by her master to a reach-out activity and she was fed by plenty of admirers. When they get home, she was vomiting and got so sick. She was rushed to a vet clinic and was hospitalized.
My buddies and their only girl friend gave us great joy at home. I became a powerful master and they remained loyal followers. At one command: “Pachaa…!” (killem!), they would rush to the culprit I pointed… and the victims are usually the felines from our neighborhood who pry at our pigeon. The poor cats will rattle and run for their lives, climbing up the tree top or to the top of our hexagonal bird cage and then jumped off the wall. And at the command of “Okay, enough..!” my loyalist would stop barking and settle back to their kennels and their friend Scarlet, run to my arms for a cuddle.
Buddies make one life lived to a full.
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