WAKEYPEDIA, that know-it-all and pretender to Google’s throne, briefly describes the dog breed Shih Tzu as “having a very people-oriented, housebound personality.” Not satisfied, I continued further to know that they can, however, be very affectionate but stubborn, possess a happy disposition, but thrive on constant attention.
The yin and yang of doggos. In other words, and more importantly, spoiled. As such, this prima donna of the canine universe hates being alone. Well, that explains it then.
No, we don’t own one. My partner has had it with our 6-footer Snorkel, a mix of Dalmatian and Beagle, long ago. For one, because of his size, I was the only one who could walk him (which sadly wasn’t regular), and also because he had a penchant for chewing every footwear he came in contact with. Thus, when he died, the matey said, those reasons, plus the pain of the loss, were the end of it.
The Shih Tzu belonged to our neighbor. One late afternoon, as we arrived after a weekend visit to relatives in Gensan, the quiet was instantly broken by continuous yapping from an apparently new dog that stood by the fence we and our neighbor shared. Right away, as a peace offering to their pet, I threw a cookie across the barrier. A grave mistake.
It seemed that mutt took my gesture wrongly. Since that afternoon, he would bark nonstop in our direction and would only stop when I threw in whatever food bits we had. For a while, even, I found it amusing that he appeared to have grown hoarse from his incessant barking to get our attention.
Cross-examining myself in my mind, I constantly asked why I gave that pest (with a silent s) a second and nth serving in the first place. Answer? I couldn’t do anything in the house anymore, with his bark drilling into my head. While food quieted him for a few hours, whenever he sensed our presence, it was back to square one. Many a time, I found myself going to the bedroom to write my articles because the dining table had simply become an unbearable place to do things.
During some nights, my partner and I have discussed my constant irritation, and she always insisted that I should just not let the dog spoil my day. Her ‘dogs will be dogs’ reasoning doesn’t sit well with me, even though (don’t get me wrong), I love dogs. Not just this particular one.
During my self-cross, I, of course, thought of talking to the owner whom I’ve known for more than twenty years of residency. It’s just that years ago, I also complained about one of their dogs that always got out and terrorized passers-by. I didn’t want to sound like an overly complaining kapitbahay, so that’s it. A never-ending dog day for me and my little tormentor. If you’re asking if there’s a closure to this tale. For one, I’ve already surrendered to my fate. I’m thinking of buying dog food next time.
