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A Sad Story
of A Boy and His Dog –
And How it
All Could Be Different
I was visiting my brother’s
house recently and noticed that his 12 year old
son, Jack, was not as chipper as he normally
was. As a matter of fact, he was downright sad
and not communicating. I asked my brother about
his son and he made it all clear. My nephew had
lost his “best friend” the night before. His
dog, Spider.
Spider had been in the
family for six years and, though there were four
children in the family, Jack and Spider had
created a very strong bond with one another.
They were inseparable. Jack volunteered to do
most of the doggie chores – feeding, walking and
cleaning up after Spider when necessary.
Most evenings when Jack was
not otherwise involved they would go for a walk
in the neighborhood. It’s hard to determine
which of the two enjoyed those walks more – Jack
or Spider. That’s how inseparable they were.
Jack did not regard walking the dog as a chore,
but a pleasure that he looked forward to.
That’s what made the story
of Spider’s demise all the more heart-rending.
And I would not mention it to Jack right now –
and maybe never, because it would do no good in
this case – but the outcome could have been
avoided.
Jack and Spider usually
walked for about 45 minutes. Most of it was
through parkland and well away from roads. Jack
would love to have let Spider roam free, because
he knew that Spider would never run away from
him. But the law is that every dog had to be
on a leash at all times when outdoors.
Like many dogs, Spider was
very spirited and curious and wanted to explore
everything and move faster than Jack generally
walked. Often, Jack would break into a trot
with Spider and let the dog run pretty fast.
But on this night, Jack was a bit tired from his
football practice at school that day and was not
in a mood to do any running.
But Spider did not know
about the football practice. All he wanted to
do was move a lot faster than Jack was moving,
and he let Jack know by straining, straining,
straining on the leash. But Jack was used to it
and held on tight. Until the unexpected
happened. The leash snapped. And Spider
scurried away at a blinding pace.
Jack ran as fast as he
could to try to keep up and grab Spider, but to
no avail. And just ahead, a highway loomed.
Spider was not used to being near many roads and
highways and did not know what dangers they held
for a dog. Before long, Jack heard the
unthinkable – the loud, ugly sound of brakes
screeching and a thud. It was Spider.
When Jack reached the road
where Spider lay, he came upon a very upset
driver standing over his beloved dog. “I am so,
so sorry,” the driver said, “I never saw him. I
could have stopped if I had just seen him in the
dark, but he totally blended into the
darkness.”
That’s the sad story, and
the moral is for the want of a $7.99 pet safety
light, Spider was no longer with us. A pet
safety light, called Pet Blinkie, is a vibrant,
multi-colored light that attaches easily to the
collar, leash or harness. The pet safety light
is waterproof and visible up to a half-mile
away.
My nephew Jack is not able
to bring Spider back, but you can be sure that I
am going to provide him with a pet safety light
when he can finally bring himself to replace his
old friend. If you have a dog, you can make
sure now that this doesn’t happen to it. |
If
you love your pet you will love the Pet Blinkie. Pet Blinkies
are vibrant, multi-color lights that attach easily to a collar,
leash or harness. Pet Blinkies are waterproof and visible up to
1/2 mile away. Available in 6 blinking, vibrant colors.