Dogs of My Life – Master

Okay, let me pause a minute for you to laugh heartily at the name of the third Dog of My Life or DOML, as you will see I have shortened it to. I understand your point, I mean in the bible within the book of Genesis it is made abundantly clear that he created man to have dominion over all the animals of the earth. Well, anyone who has ever had a pet long term will tell you that over time that line can blur.

I think Master was trying to tell my brother and I he wanted fish in his diet.

I can remember going to pick up Master as a puppy. We got him from a cousin to my dad and there was a half dozen dogs to choose from. I think Master was the one that seemed the most friendly and we were not disappointed with our choice. I wish I had pictures from when he was a pup, but unlike his predecessor, I at least have more than one photo.

One thing about Master stands out so vividly, even nearly thirty years later. He absolutely feared thunderstorms. At the time I had him I was not staying home during the summer alone yet and instead I went to my neighbor’s home, who was a day care mother as she termed it. There was anywhere from six to sixteen kids there and it was a great place to spend summer days. But frequently during the summer that number would swell by one drenched and fearful dog that had easily hurdled her dog lot fence to find me.

This is the best photo I have to show you how gorgeous of a dog he was.

If you read the first DOML post, you know that my first dog, snoopy, met a tragic end, failing to grasp the rudimentary truths of cars and running willy-nilly amongst them. For Master the end was not sudden like this, but rather a mysterious one. Suddenly one day he was nowhere to be found. Over time my parents conversation about Master’s fate settled on the idea he was probably taken by someone. I have no idea if this was close to the real reason or if they were exercising their parental discretion to avoid relating a less desirable description of Master’s situation.

I thank you for stopping in to read the third DOML post. I want to tell you at this point that there is a reason for this series other than just a simple reminiscence. Very soon I intend to add a new dog to the Dogs of My Life, a Shetland Sheepdog pup. I plan to cover all the DOML in chronological order, so it may be a couple of weeks before I work up to that one, but trust me it will be forthcoming.

We had an acre and a half for Master to roam.

I think Master was trying to tell my brother and I he wanted fish in his diet.

Other Dogs of My Life Posts:

Snoopy

Puff