Now There's Only One

For the last 20 years my life has been ruled by dogs.

From the moment I woke in the morning until I went to bed at night there was always something canine that needed doing. Whether it was letting them out or letting them in, filling food bowls or picking up poop, the dogs demanded my attention.

From September until January we hunted more days than not, and I loved watching them work. Hunting also tired them out. Consequently they were best behaved in the fall.

Wearing them out during the other eight months of the year wasn’t as easy.

I had as many as four at one time, and always at least two, but now there’s only one.

And a very quiet dog at that.

After Ace passed away a couple of months ago life became much quieter. He was a loud dog who liked to bark and whine. He even breathed loudly.

He also required extra care during his final years. I had to lift him in and out of the truck, wait an eternity for him to do his business in the yard, and clean up his messes in the house.

Dot, on the other hand, is so easy at times I forget she’s there. She hops effortlessly into the truck, seldom barks, and only whines when she needs to go out, which is seldom. She walks at heel on a leash, and is well-behaved in the boat.

Barb and I talked about getting another dog, going so far as to put down a deposit on a future pup at the kennel where we got Dot. Now, however, we’ve reconsidered. Do we really want another puppy and the accompanying chaos it would bring? Life with a single dog is so easy.

And Dot doesn’t seem to care.

We needlessly worried she’d be lonely without Ace, but her grieving period — if there was one — is certainly over.

Now I worry I’ll become just one more old guy with a spoiled dog. She doesn’t yet have a sparkly collar or wear a cute little coat, and she still sits in the backseat of the pickup, but I find myself frequenting only those fast food restaurants that offer her a treat in the drive-thru.

I like to think I’m free of my canine obsession, but I’m only kidding myself.

One dog or four.

It makes little difference.

Parker Heinlein is at [email protected]