I Want to Have a Dog Again

Yesterday, I stopped at a light and next to me was the picture of happiness. It was a dog, maybe a Lab/retriever mix, sitting in the backseat of a car, with his head thrust out the opened window. He'd sniff a bit, then open his mouth in that retriever smile and loll out his tongue in joy. Then, he'd pull his head back in and sit for a minute, then stick his head back out for another sniff.

I miss having a pet dog.

We've had dogs ever since we were married. Well, I guess, we had to wait till we'd moved out of the apartment world into a house, so we got our first dog when we'd been married a little less than two years. We've had a series of really awesome dogs, too. Rocky, Casper, Rimsky, Annie, King, Jed...all terrific, all loyal, and noble. After Jed died, and I began to work fulltime, we didn't get another dog because it would have cruel to leave a dog home alone all day. Cats can take it, but dogs need their people. We should still have gotten another dog while the boys were living at home, though. He would have been okay home alone for part of the day. Sorry boys.

But, I've found a solution! Today I read that the Roy Roger's Museum (which used to be in Southern California, but moved to Branson, Missouri years ago) is now closed. They are auctioning off all the stuff at Christie's in NYC.

They're selling everything. I COULD OWN TRIGGER!

(Excerpt from an interview with the son of the Rogers.)

We have to talk about Roy and Trigger, possibly the most famous horse in show business. Was the Roy-Trigger relationship as close as the media made it out to be?It really was. Dad and Trigger were both young when they started—Trigger was only four years old, and Dad was 26—and on some level I think they both felt this was the start of something special. Over their 30+ years together, they established a bond of trust and mutual respect. Once, when the show was passing through New York, the truck took a sharp corner, and the trailer carrying Trigger overturned, trapping him inside. Most horses would get so panicked in this situation that you’d have to put them down on the spot. But Trigger was different. Dad managed to reach in through the door of the trailer, through the broken glass, and put his hand on Trigger’s neck. He said, “It’s ok, old man, it’ll be ok.” The fire department came, and they were eventually able to slide Trigger out using the fire hose. He came out with just a few knocks and bruises—that’s all. That shows you the kind of trust they had.
When Trigger passed, my dad was so distraught he didn’t tell the family for over a year (we didn’t know, because he was kept in another stable off our ranch). I think to him it was like losing a child. He told my mom, “I can’t just put him in the ground.” He had Trigger beautifully mounted and installed in the museum. A lot of people were upset about that, but I think he made the right choice. Trigger was one of the most popular attractions at the museum.





But more realistically: I could own Bullet, their German Shepherd:



Those of you other fans of the Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Show will recognize Buttermilk, Dale's horse, there in the background.


But Bullet would be an ideal dog for our family right now. He's about as active as Kitty Cat, and would require almost the same amount of attention and care. What should I bid???