A Year of Blogging: October 4, 2011

October 4 was 'World Animal Day'. I had to do some research on this one. World Animal Day was started in 1931 by a group of Ecologists meeting in Florence, Italy. It was started to highlight the plight of endangered animals. It has grown since then to include animals of all kinds. October 4 was chosen as it is the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi who is the patron saint of animals. According to the World Animal Day website, www.worldanimalday.org/uk , it is a day to:

~To celebrate animal life of all forms ~To celebrate humankind's relationship with the animal kingdom ~To acknowledge the diverse roles that animals play in our lives ~To acknowledge and be thankful for the ways animals enrich our lives

I am an animal lover. I cry when animals are injured in movies. If I see a dog running loose I say a little prayer for it that their owners will find them quickly and safely. I cannot watch the ASPCA commercials. I can't stand the thought of animals being harmed. We didn't have pets when I was growing up. Mom and Dad used to have a German Shepherd named Sargent or 'Sarge' for short. Mom took him to obedience training, and because Dad was away a lot at night working on the snow plow, she had him trained as a guard dog. From the stories they told, he was an excellent guard dog, but he could also be a big puppy dog. When Mom and Dad sat down with a bowl of popcorn on Saturday night to watch TV, Sarge dragged his bag of kibble into the living room and munched with them. He was super protective of women, and when I came along, I became one of his charges. I was a baby when Mom and Dad got rid of Sarge. Grandpa Wager came to pick me up out of my playpen and Sarge locked his jaws around Grandpa's wrist. He didn't bite Grandpa, just held his wrist waiting for a command. Mom issued the release command, and no one was hurt. But my parents were terribly worried. What if he turned on me? They couldn't have that worry, so they called a family friend who had always loved Sarge. He came and took Sarge, and gave Sarge a great life. Sarge lived to be about 15 years old. After that, we didn't have pets. Dad said it wasn't fair to have a dog because we were not home a lot. I understand his reasoning. Now, my sister and I both have two dogs. My mother called the other night to find out what her grandpuppies wanted for their birthdays. The dogs are a big part of our lives now. They are a lot of work, but I love them. I love that I come home from a crappy day at the office and they are happy to see me. They don't expect anything other than pets, snuggles, and dog biscuits. Of course, they are even happier to get beef or chicken. At night they chase each other around the house and provide more entertainment than any sitcom. My life would be so lonely without the dogs. So today, as with every day, I am so thankful I fell for that adorable puppy 10 years ago.