The tall man looked tired and pale and his little dog looked dazed and confused as they meandered about the perimeter of the grassy slopping dog park.
My dog approached them and I followed her but they moved along and further away, both seeming to be in their own and yet separate worlds. He has earplugs connected a device listening to music or something else taking him even further away from where his feet actually were. The dog led the way, sniffing and snorting at the weeds with no particular direction.
What a pair.
The fenced in coral is where people take their pets to exercise. It`s not large so our paths invariably would cross as we meandered.
My dog , Lacey, got nowhere with the pint-sized wanderer with his lower teeth and jaw clenched above his uppers. The dog`s eyes were with glazed. The two small canines passed like ships in the night without the customary sniffing greeting; the handshake of the dog world.
I raised my sunglasses above my head to make eye contact with the man with tired eyes. After all, dog parks are not just for dogs, people meet people there, and that`s nice. The light, cool mist and the damp ground were keeping away the regulars, so it was just the four of us on this late morning.
As we approached from opposite directions he removed his earplugs and looked up from the ground - " He`s Alfie. " his tired face whispered.
" Excuse me ? Good Morning "
" Alfie , his name is Alfie. "
" Oh that`s a great dog name. I like that, my dog is Lacey ."
Lacey is a fluffy white Pomapoo ( A poodle mixed with a Pomeranian, or that`s what the sales guy told us when he paid 100.00 bucks for her .) She weighs about 20 pounds.
" His full name is Alfalfa but we call him Alfie . He`s a Bichon. "
Alfie was even smaller than Lacey and sort of runty.
"Oh, like Alfafa , The Little Rascal ? "
" Yes, you see he has a bump on his head and that makes his hair stick up like Alfalfa`s cowlick "
" Ha, yes I see that – his mark of distinction. "
" He ran away once and we put up posters and got a call. They said we think we found your dog. I asked them if he he has a bump on his head and they said yes, so I said that`s Alfie , I`ll come get him "
Aflie`s owner`s speech was very dry, I noted.
" Well, he looks like a nice pet. He walks around and doesn`t bother anybody or other dogs." I commented.
No response
" He can`t be left alone "
" What do you mean? "
" He goes crazy if we leave him in the house. He tears the place up. If we put him in a crate he chews that up and all the stuffing too."
" Why not put him in a wire mesh one or plastic, that he can`t destroy? "
" We tried but then he hurts himself. He will chew out his toenails and bite his own legs. He has extreme separation anxiety. I think the bump on his head goes into his brain. My wife and I can`t leave him. If we go out for a few hours we never know what we`ll will find when we return."
I could see now what the man looked so tired and withdrawn. This little dog was ruling his life and he told me this has been going on for nine years. I could not imagine such a life. A pet is for joy, or at least this is my take on it.
" We used to have a German Shepard but he died a few years back. He told me. "When we left him home with our Shepard, Alfie was OK and we could go out and he would be fine when we got back. But Shep died and now Alfie goes crazy again "
I thought and thought... and I really felt bad for the guy but after nine years of being held captive by Alfie`s dysfunction I assumed that every possible remedy must have been considered. He even said they had consulted a number of veterinarians and dog trainers and even a dog shrink. Yet, his dilemma continued to nag at me the longer I listened to his tale of woe . While he spoke, I pondered, grasping for an original idea that had yet to be tried.
Then it came to me!
"Why don`t you get Alfie a cat? They are low maintenance and self managing and you said Alfie was OK with Shep the Shepard, so maybe any live- body will do?
For the first time the man`s face changed from a sullen mask His eye showed some life – and hope.
" You know, I never thought of that – That`s a great idea! "
His body moved briskly, with energy and he reached for Alfie`s leash that was hung on the fence near the water Guzzler .
" I think I`m going to go home now – I want to talk to my wife - Alfie , Alfie common boy lets go – let s go see Mommy ! ``
I said good bye and good luck, feeling pleased that maybe I did something to help this one person, this one one day in this one life .
Day`s went by and there was no sign of Aflie and the tired man.
A week passed and Lacey and I were there early and they arrived. The man was not wearing ear plugs connecting him to a digital world and his shirt was neatly tucking in and he look like he had gotten some sleep and a little sun tan; maybe from a full round of golf.
He bounded right over to my sunny bench; Alfie in tow.
" Hey - how`s it going?", was my greeting.
" Listen I`m glad I ran into you "
"Me too. How`ve you been?"
" We got a cat – like you said – and Alfie is so happy and we can leave him how – we even played a full round of golf yesterday - Gee – thanks a lot ! "
" Not a problem. It was my pleasure. I like to think that there are no problems – only solutions. " I`m glad it worked out."
" Alfie chased Lacey and the man bounded after a well worn tennis ball that all the dogs like to chase and slobber on at the dog park."
Michael domino