By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas
She was a part of the family, thus, I refer to her as “she.” She was a very good mother-dog. Throughout her life of about 14 years, she always cared well for her young. Except for two I ran over at night, all her puppies always lived. She grieved long over those two cute and chubby puppies’ corpses. Even when they were not responding to her caresses, she still cuddled them and licked their fur. Transferring them to the shade when the sun was hot or when it was drizzling.
After some days, the pups’ corpses started to smell. We had to trick their mom with bones she had to go and get at a distance. While munching the bones, somebody got the smelly puppies and rushed them to a prepared graveyard.
The scene thereafter was heartbreaking. She was crying while sniffing around in search of her beloved pups.
In human years, she lived for about 98 years if the equivalent of one dog year is seven human years, considering that she was an askal of medium size.
We are happy that she did not suffer at all. She did not get sick. Silently abstaining from food for about four days was her way of saying goodbye. Am sure she is already resting in peace in dog heaven. We will surely miss her welcoming sound and smiling face whenever we arrived. Tail wagging, she would try to stand to get our hands to lightly tap her or rub her head or back. That is how lovable dogs can be.
She was the opposite of an earlier do of ours who was a he. During his early years, being small, he would be terrorized by a gang of dogs of a neighbor. He was brilliant and took advantage of her smallness by running under the car, out of reach of the bigger ones. The leader of that gang was a big lady-dog.
His being terrorized went on for a number of years while he was growing fast. In no time, he became the bully in the neighborhood. He would terrorize all the members of the gang that used to chase him.
The lady-dog that was the toughie before had to suffer for her karma. A number of times I saw our dog raping her on the side of the road.
Yes, no matter how powerful you are, politically, physically or economically, if you misuse such advantage by making others suffer, you are bound to answer for it in the future.
Here’s the other lesson. That dog of ours that became a rapist often disappeared for a few days a number of times. When he came home, there would be wounds on her back or side obviously caused by a bolo.
She must have been watching over a lady-dog in heat, perhaps even eating with her or just recklessly staying there. Since his body was good being sinewy and relatively big, he would be very good for pulutan, somebody might have been tempted to get him for that. More so if he was raping their dog and stealing her food, or raiding the kitchen.
Obviously that dog of ours was using his small head instead of the big one. Sooner or later somebody would get him. (Moral of story?)
Before that happened, I exchanged him with another smaller she-dog. One of her offspring was our dog that just died. That she-dog has some grand kids still in our care.
The cycle of life.
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