The Dog You Never Forget

by Jonni



Does everyone have that one dog in their life that all other dogs are measured against?

Mine was Simka, a big, hairy mutt whose mother was part German Shepherd. His father was unknown. My roomate and I both picked out a pup from the litter of 12, and Simka and Mica coudn’t have been more different. Her Mica was headstrong, sociable, and always ready for a game. My Simka followed every rule he could understand, tolerated other animals only because he had to, and acted like a grumpy old man before his first birthday. But he was amazingly loyal, loving, and devoted to me – and of course it was mutual.

My most recent dog, (who was 9 years old when I adopted her), was a darling Border Collie who was always polite, well-mannered and happy. Pepper’s only fault was a minor obsession with her Frisbee, but with Border Collies, an obsession or two is part of the package. No matter how you looked at it, she was a perfect dog – but I admit that there were times when I compared her to Simka. It wasn’t fair, of course (almost like comparing children – it just shouldn’t be done). But it happened.

I’ve known people who give up on dogs because they grieve the loss of that “special” dog that they know they’ll never be able to replace. But that’s just not my way. They’re all special, in one way or another, and it’s such a pleasure to get to know them. And who knows – it’s always possible that the next one will be even more perfect that old Simka was.