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One
Dog's Life
Lacy's Story
Today my
life began. Although I am nothing more than a tiny being
invisible to the eye, my entire body and
soul are already determined. I am a girl. I am gentle
and love children. I will have stand-up ears and dark
brown eyes that show all the love I have to give. I am a
rascal. My inborn urge to dig will bring me trouble.
My teeth are sharp
and my body strong and athletic, but I will never use them
against people.
And I can hardly wait.
Today
I am born. I have four brothers and five sisters.
They are all warm, soft and cuddly like myself.
We don't do anything
except nurse and sleep to prepare for our future lives.
I have opened my eyes
for the first time. My mother is large and her nearness
keeps me and my brothers
and sisters
warm. Some day I will look just like her. My littermates
still spend most of our time eating
and sleeping.
Today
I tried my legs. They are shaky, but I persevere and will
succeed. I begin to play with the others and
frighten myself with my antics. Our people pick us up each
day and hold us closely, talking quietly. When
they stroke me, my body can hardly contain my happiness. It
quivers with joy, and I use my tongue to show them.
We
are growing quickly and have learned to eat from a pan. We
move around and climb out of our box. Our
people say we are
little pests and put us into a larger pen, hugging us to soothe
their words.
I have a name
now. It is "Midnight Lace." I am
called Lacy by my people. My family is full of
bounces,
kisses, and
mischief. We have many toys and the children in the family
romp with us, making the house come
alive with laughter
and fun. I am beginning to learn what "No, Lacy!"
means.
New people have come into our world. and some of my brothers and
sisters have left. Everyone shows me love,
and I return it.
Today
I came to a new house. The people are not my people, but
they seem nice. I am happy as long as my
tummy is full and I
am loved. I eat my supper and the children take me
out. I do what I am supposed to do,
and they say,
"Good, Lacy!" We have a good time playing.
Today
the children forgot to take me out and I did something bad. I
heard a big "No!," and I am in disgrace.
I know I did wrong
and will try not to misbehave any more.
Things are different
here, and people don't have much time for me. I spend as much
time lying around and
sleeping as I did
when I was a little puppy. I am bored, and I find things
for myself to do. My people are not
happy. They
raise their voices, and I do not feel the loving touch of their
hands as often. I am much bigger
and I need care and
training. Too much, the people say. They say they did
not know they would have to brush
my coat so often or
that I would shed so much. They say I dug a hole in their
flower bed.
I say I am sorry with
my eyes, but they do not see.
Today I was taken for a long ride. Usually I love to ride,
but this time it was different. It was at night and the
man was very
quiet. The lady was crying, and the children were
sleeping. I felt upset and didn't know why.
Then the car door
opened, and I hopped out, ready for a romp. But the door slammed,
and the car drove away.
I am
frightened. I am hungry. I wait.
I
have waited a very long time. My tummy hurts. I am
scared. I have seen people at their houses, but they
have no love for
me. My eyes shine with the love I have to give, but nobody
wants it.
I try to find
food. I am hungry. I dig through some garbage, but
there is so little food, and the people come
out to yell at me.
I
run across the road. It is dark, and a car hits me,
throwing me into the gutter. For some time, I lie still.
Finally, I get up
because the ache in my stomach is worse than the pain in my
leg. I walk through the night,
searching for what I
have lost. But I cannot find it. I lie down to
wait....I don't know what for...
Today a man came. He called me. He did not say,
"Here, Lacy," like my people did, but he said,
"Here, Doggy."
He seemed kind.
I am so afraid, but my leg hurts and his touch is gentle.
He puts me in his car. We go to a
large place with many
other dogs. I have my first full meal in a long time.
Another man looks at me. My leg is very painful, and my
heart is full of sadness. My beautiful coat is no
longer shiny, and my
bones show through it. My eyes still glow and I lick his
hand.
He says, "What a
shame. This was a beautiful dog, but nobody will want her
now."
Today my life ended.
Author Unknown
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