Yesterdays re-run of "My One Great Dog"
reminded me of another great dog.
My friend Frog brought Maggie to my house when Minnie was 6 months old. He just got Maggie, she was four months old.
My friend Frog brought Maggie to my house when Minnie was 6 months old. He just got Maggie, she was four months old.
Maggie was a
golden retriever, Minnie a black lab.
Maggie was a true golden, a reddish golden color with yellow golden
eyes.
When Maggie
and Minnie were introduced they were instant friends. They chased each other and play-fought until they were exhausted. Minnie usually got
the best of the fights as she was shorter and knew to use her size and strength
for leverage. It didn’t matter, it was
always only play.
Minnie was a
“Show” Lab, bred to specific traits for show.
She was beautiful. Maggie was a
field dog, pretty, but bred to hunt.
Minnie would not see a squirrel even if it ran right by her. Maggie sniffed out and flushed birds the
first time Frog took her on a hunt.
Frog claimed
he “Never trained her, she was just a natural.”
Minnie and
Maggie were friends for about 10 years.
They only got together maybe twice a year and it was always the
same. About a mile from Frog's house,
Minnie got up in the car with tail wagging excitement. At the same time, Frog would see Maggie get
excited,
“Minnie’s almost
here!” The mention of “Minnie” made
Maggie jump and turn circles even more.
When we
arrived, the two pals ran at each other and immediately began to play-fight. They would tire, lie down
directly opposite each other panting and in a few minutes started the play-fight dance all over.
Minnie was
the beauty queen, Maggie the smart one. Frog
taught her to bark on a hand command, sit, stay and come, all without a voice
command, which I assume was helpful when bird hunting.
When Frog
was going to take Maggie hunting he would start singing the Elmer Fudd “Kill
the wabbit” song and Maggie would get extra excited.
Frog has had
several dogs, I’ve known most of them and they were great dogs, clearly though,
Maggie was that one great dog you are allowed.
Frog and I
had our great dogs at the same time, and the great dogs had each other.
Maggie, was like Frog, really smart and a
skilled hunter at home in the field.
Minnie was like me…the pretty one!
Its nice that the two of them got along, no matter how far between it was that they saw each other. Our corgi was so terribly not friendly with other dogs he never had a friend like Maggie or Minnie. I think anyone or any species needs to have a friend.
ReplyDeletebetty
Maggie sounds perfectly delightful and so smart as all golden retrievers are. Many of them know things instinctively and are very easy to train for other things. My Max was trained to come at a finger click.
ReplyDeleteI think it's marvellous how dogs understand what we say to them. They sure are bright animals.
ReplyDeletePS haha, I like pretty dogs!
Another wonderful post, JoeH. Thanx.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
What a nice post. None of our dogs have ever had best friend kinda relationships like that, but I sure have. You know, those people who may not see for years, but the moment you reconnect, it's as though you've never been apart.
ReplyDeleteSweet. Those are one of my favorite breeds.
ReplyDeleteA great duo! I guess, like people, their personalities just clicked.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it's a dog's super hearing, or a special sense, but I've noticed our dogs perk up and watch the driveway many minutes before Hick arrives. It's not like he gets home at the same time every day. He says they do the same thing when they're with him at the BARn. They start getting excited, and he knows I'll be there within five minutes.
That made me laugh through misty eyes.
ReplyDeleteWhat a precious story! Thank you, i needed that.
ReplyDeleteComment from Yaya deleted in error
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this sweet post I read your previous one and it also brought tears to my eyes. We've had 4 dogs over the last 45yrs. of our marriage. Ferris the wonder dog, Eddy the boxer, Chubbs the sweetest, kindest dog ever, and now Arnold..a bit weird but we've only had him 10mo so maybe there's hope! Eddy the boxer was really our youngest son's dog. He brought this sweet puppy home at a time when Jordan was having a difficult time in his life. I believe that dog saved his life in many ways. It's amazing the different personalities dogs have and how they can really be such an important part of our lives. I'm glad you had that one great dog in yours.
Wow - I never knew that dogs could have BFFs, too!
ReplyDelete