SAMANTHA
---------------------
But since her nickname was "Sammy", I'm lovably going to use that reference.
Being of Labrador breed, she never ever failed to act like Labs have come to be expected to behave. She was perfect in everything she did. Predictable to the core. Now, I'm sure we've all heard others remark that pets do not think,anticipate or plan things. They're simply wrong in this writer's estimation, because my wife Marilyn and I know better!
Sammy came into the life of the family after being treated by a veterinarian for a cut on her leg, and determined to be a stray at the age of 1 yr. She was an obedient, amiable dog to children and adults alike. She loved the water, as all breeds of Labradors do and thoroughly loved to chase and catch the frizbie in mid-air, or retrieve it from the water down at a favorite picnic spot in Bothell, Wa. called Bothell Landing. She got so good at catching it in the air in such a high, spectacular fashion, spectators would stop to watch, clap and cheer her on. She loved every minute of performing before a crowd.
She became as much a part of the family as she would a kid and she was loved that way.
One day, around the age of seven in human years, the family cat named Kitz gave birth to a litter of three surviving kittens, causing a bunch of tender excitement in the family as Sammy looked on, like a female dog without pups of her own, would. She gently sniffed them all, giving them a lick of her own.
While the new family members settled in to the lazy,warm summer we were having, Marilyn and her sixteen year old daughter, Pam, left the house to go shopping and, with it being a pleasant Saturday afternoon, I elected to stay home and read the newspaper out on the patio. Kitz, the kittens and Sammy joined me and we all settled down in a lazy day mood. Sammy lay between me and Kitz, with the kittens meandering in between. Kitz soon closed her eyes and was oblivious to the world around her.
I became engrossed with the paper until I heard one of the kittens meowing, and I glanced down to see one of them that was mysteriously,sloppy wet. She was among the other two and I could see nothing else wrong, so I went back to the newspaper. In what seemed like a short while, I heard fussing again, looked down and there was one of the other two, sloppy wet as well, but still with the other two lying near Kitz, who by the way, was still sound asleep.
Curiosity got the best of me by this time, so I decided to keep a closer eye on what was going on. Soon, the third kitten decided to stray away from the tiny family and found it's way over to the tall grass off to the side of the patio. Unexpectedly, Sammy stood up, walked over to the little duffer and opening her mouth, picked up the whole kitten in her jowels and carried it, oh so gently, back to it's mother, sat her down, gave her a final lick and laid back down beside me. Thus, the sloppy, wet kittens.
I could hardly believe my eyes, and with Marilyn and Pam returning home shortly after, I told the story to them. Needless to say, there was a touch of disbelief in their demeanor that told me not to push the story.
A couple of days later, Marilyn humbly announced to me that what I told them was now believable, because she witnessed it as well. She eagerly told me what she also witnessed. I was relieved, to say the least.
A heartwarming story I thought I would share. Just sayin'.
No comments:
Post a Comment