RESPONSIBLE PET-RENTHOOD!

     I am starting to dislike my neighbors; a family that has been right beside us for the past eight years. 

     We have always had a very warm, friendly relationship in the past.  Because we share a common driveway, most outdoor projects such as plant placements, outdoor fixtures and even car parking, our two families discussed and agreed on. 

     Since they got themselves a dog, however, I slowly but surely started getting to realize how irresponsible and inconsiderate they are. 

     Our family has always had a pet.  When we enjoyed a bigger residence, there was one time when we had five dogs, a stray cat, a couple of rabbits that grew into a tribe and a fighting, macho duck!  As the kids matured, we trimmed the pets down to just one dog.  

     We had a loving, calm, and sedate pug in Mozart.  By instinct, he always knew his limits.  Running away a few times, he always found that half a block was all he could manage.  He got spoiled when it came to food choices.  He could eat whatever he picked.  He slept with us in our beds and expropriated our spaces.  Mozart had a heart condition and lived for eleven years until he died of heatstroke sometime back. 

     Because I truly grieved for Mozart, I could not consider getting another pet.  Two years ago, Only Son (OS) thought the grieving should end and surprised me with another pug.  This time, my pet is a frisky, over-eager one and we named him Chopin.  We call him Choppy for short.  Lately, his nickname started sounding like Chubby for the simple reason that, yes, he has become so chubby and fat!  Sorry, it’s my fault.  But the vet that attended to Mozart before said it’s alright to be a little fat as long as they still show a waistline.  Choppy’s vet on the other hand seems to refuse to add any other comment except to say, “He’s overweight!”  

     Modesty aside, we do try our best to be responsible pet-owners.  We feed, play with, and bring Choppy to the vet regularly for inoculations.  Although we don’t get to walk him as often as he wants, we ensure that he runs around until his tongue hangs out every few hours a day.  So, I guess, he is getting the exercise he needs because he is the one who surrenders by flopping down on his tummy to rest.  We exert a lot of effort, no matter how cute he tries to look, to discipline him.  At this, I fail plenty of times but The Hubby (TH) and OS are always there to right my wrong.  At two, Choppy now knows his boundaries.  He knows to climb up his chair when someone says “Up” and most times, he learns to stop whatever rowdy activity he plans to engage in when we say “Down”.  He sits politely in front of you when he asks for treats and waits for you to say “Go” to get the treat you are handing out.  Some teenage guests of the neighbors get so involved with him because he knows to bring up his paw when they say “High 5!” or “Appear!”

     Just as humans are never perfect, the same goes for my Choppy.  His one weakness - CATS!!!!  Faster than lightning he would go as soon as a cat is sighted.  No amount of calling and hollering on our part would get him to come back.  Lately, he has also learned to ask to go out not because he needs to do something but more because he could smell a cat somewhere around his turf.  Typical of the feline specie, the cats seem intent on taunting him by hanging around - on higher grounds.  My short, bow-legged little baby cannot reach them no matter how high he tries to jump!  

     Choppy has, likewise, developed the habit of sleeping right through all the television shows using our slippers as pillow.  He would even position the slippers to suit his own comfort such that we have to dig through his fats to get to wear our slippers.   It got to a point I had to explain to him that these things are called “slippers” not “SLEEPERS!”  He listens intently to the lectures but he looks at me like I had gone bonkers.  So I conclude that whatever I may have said just goes out the other ear as they would say.

Pampered and loved! 

     He shows some kind of frustration over his inability to open the door for his “sisters” and “brother” when they come home.  To aggravate matters for him, they would prompt him by saying “Open the door, Choppy!”  When someone repeats this phrase, he starts heaving until he gets to the howling stage.  The howl is soundless and he would lift his nose in the process.  All the youngsters think it is so cute but I think it might be harmful for him because he cries out with no sound. 

     Choppy is also much too appreciative of the little gestures of caring that we show him.  Every time a member of the family accompanies him out so he could do his thing, he would come home all excited and offer his ball to this particular person to play with.  So, when no one wants to play with the ball, he would carry it around in his mouth and run around in a flurry until someone notices and responds to him. 

     Of late, he has puzzled me by his refusal to sleep in his bed and always insisting on lying down right beside my bed on the floor.   Oh, he has also developed the habit of chasing after guests who step out of our house with packages taken from us.

     So much for the Choppy and his glowing resume! 

     Back to the neighbors.

     More than a year ago, they expressed their desire to get themselves a dog.  TH advised them to get a female pug so we can have little “puggies” in a few years.  Contrary to their running conversation, the neighbors went and got themselves a Labrador Retriever they named Lexus.

The giant and the glob trying to be friends

     Lexus is such a sweet dog.  He is playful but kind and while he was still a puppy, I asked TH to get Choppy to meet and pal around with Lexus.  Looking to the future, I was thinking they need to be good friends because Lexus would grow to be humongous while Choppy would remain just that little glob. 

     Even while he was a puppy, Lexus was already much, much bigger than Choppy and the latter often refused to play with him because of the puppy’s tendency to hop over him.  Fearing that Choppy’s spine might be harmed, TH decided that Choppy should no longer run around with the neighbor’s dog. 

     Life went on joyfully especially since Choppy is already pretty much self-contained.  His daily activities remained the same.  Wake up, watch his mama prep breakfast, eat, play, walk around in the driveway, get inside, sleep, eat, play, run around, watch television with mama, cry a little when everybody leaves and cry some more when they come home, learn some tricks and sleep some more.

     Lexus, on the other hand, also grew into a beautiful golden Labrador.  He was often out in the driveway frolicking in water that his “dad” would pour all over the place.  He just loved playing in water.  He would run in and out of their house while barking loudly.  His dad told TH that Lexus never learned to walk on their tiled floor and would often slip which made him bark a lot.  He also barked loudly almost through the day and the household help revealed that it was because Lexus doesn’t like to be left alone on the ground floor.  He barks because he wanted someone to come down and keep him company.   As a habit, this big dog with his big booming voice starts his barking spree sometime at dawn and stops only when he gets to play at the driveway while his “family” is having breakfast. 

     Now, this is a household of two working parents, one teenage son and a house-help who attended school.  There were times, therefore, when Lexus was left alone and howled through the day to the irritation of the nearby houses including ourselves.  His family also does not walk him so he is afraid of the streets.  TH had to push him out of the driveway at one point just so he would get to feel the street. 

     Unfortunately, he also never outgrew nor was he taught to stop the habit of gnawing at a person’s hand whenever he feels playful.  Consequently, you cannot stroke or touch him without provoking him to nibble your hand in return.  With his big teeth and uncontrolled power, even a slight loving nibble on his part is painful. 

     Because they have failed to restrain their pet's bad habits, the neighbors have now been constrained to erect a fence that confines the area within which the dog can run around.  

     Although the head of the household tries every now and then to teach Lexus certain behavior, the family obviously just could not give this dog the time to train him.  TH gave him some attention and we often laughed at the dog’s little inefficiencies.  For example, he would bark whenever he enters their residence because his front legs would step up over a height of around three inches but could not lift his hind legs to fully enter the house.  Someone always has to come and lift so he could get in.  Have you ever heard of anything so ridiculous?  He could also not hop on a chair!  Choppy realized this early on and would cockily jump into one of the driveway chairs and with nose in the air, show off while Lexus drools from below.   To further demonstrate his superiority, the evil little pug would pee on Lexus’ head!  Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!  What bad manners my baby manifests sometimes! 

     The situation of this wimpy and pitiful Labrador turned from bad to worse when the family had to get a new household help.  The previous one, who really treated him nicely, had graduated from college and been able to secure better employment; and the new helper does not seem to know the first thing about hygiene.  She would sweep their part of the driveway and pour all the dirt into their flower pots.  She dumped all their garbage, dog poo and all just behind the empty unit at the end of our driveway.  When the rains came, all the dirt flowed downwards to our two units!

     Soon enough, I saw our vet making a house call on Lexus.  The dog was stricken with Corona virus.  This made me apprehensive because, as I said before, our two families share a common driveway.  Whatever made this Labrador sick might also contaminate our little pug.  I called the vet just to verify if there is any preventive measure we needed to take.  I was assured by the vet that Choppy is safe from any contamination since he has been fully inoculated against illnesses.   It seems that Lexus was not getting the same kind of medical treatment and his family has been remiss in bringing him for immunization! 

     I often watch this beautiful golden Labrador lolling around in the driveway.  His eyes are, as usual, red all over and he picks up all kinds of items he could lay his teeth on.  He digs out their plants and wanders around aimlessly not knowing what he could do with his time.  I think to myself, “What a waste!” 

     If only the country has a viable animal protection and control program, I would not hesitate to report his situation in the hope that he would find another family that would not only love him but would throw in caring and training as well. 

     In a country of almost a 100 million people, however, where the majority are poor and claim to go hungry at times and 80% being unemployed or underemployed, animal protection may take last priority in our government programs.  

     Maybe, Lexus’ great-grand pups may enjoy better protection in a future time.  Right now, we could only watch in frustration at the waste of such a beautiful creature.  So much for responsible pet-renthood!