Cheers Dears: The Dog's Tale

Cheers Dears: The Dog's Tale

By Augusto Pinto

Dears

When I took my great big German Shepard Laskar for his constitutional, he told me a tale. Let him tell it in his own words.

Laskar began: "The other day I saw six brown curs assault a black mongrel with murderous intent. I was with a knot of spectators by the roadside watching the dogfight. It was a one-sided show between the Blackie and the six Brownies. Blackie had long since thrown in the towel. His face was torn up and the fight was in the below-the-belt stage now. Blackie was on his back, bloody and helpless."

"Abruptly the biggest Brownie went for the kill. This huge big Brownie leapt  at Blackie's throat gnashing. Its jaws snapped on Blackie's collar which was contemptuously torn asunder. Blackie exhausted now pawed pathetically as from all sides the snapping, snarling Brownies came down upon him. He was helpless, bloody and helpless."

"I, like the rest, stared in revulsion and yet we were curiously excited. Everyone was still, as we waited for the end. Then to break the tension, someone among the audience proposed a bet. "How much longer will Blackie be able to survive their mangling jaws? I offer odds of three to one that Blackie will survive for thirty minutes."  The gathered audience of dogs raucously started yelling out wagers." 

"However although Blackie wouldn't have survived for long, a whistle from the Master of the Brownies spoilt the fun. He was calling them home. The Brown hounds halted, and silently glared for a fraction of a second at Blackie. Then they bounded back to their Master, disappointed for not being allowed to finish the job. Yet they were smugly satisfied: they had taught the son of a bitch a lesson he would not forget in a hurry. Of course the spectators were also disappointed, deprived as they were of their sport."

"On the way back to the Master, their leader, the biggest Brownie snarled: "We taught him a good lesson." That's when a youngish Brownie wondered aloud,"What was the lesson we taught Blackie?" That puzzled them all. In the excitement they had completely forgotten what had caused the rumpus in the first place. After a while the biggest Brownie, glaring at the youngster snarled,"Those black pariahs need to be shown their place! And you had better mind your mouth! We have enough to do without your stupid questions."  The little Brownie, slunk away snubbed, tail between his legs."

"In the meanwhile, the spectators dispersed  slightly peeved at being deprived of their sport and their betting. I alone stopped to watch the dog. The mongrel lay there bleeding in agony. At length, it lifted itself up, limping and staggering around like a drunken man, until it flopped down again slurring horrible words weirdly."

"It whined and howled. Then it fixed its lone remaining eye on me and wailed,"Laskar, why, why, why did you allow this? Do you have no pity for me at all?"  I, Laskar the Great, frankly was startled, and cringed inwardly, but gathering my wits about me I laughed loudly and retorted to Blackie, "Who am I to intervene in your squabbles? For all I know you would yourself have protested. And for all I  know - you might have got together with the Brownies and turned on me. After all you are related by blood. Dogs will be dogs. One cannot trust them. It's a law of nature""

Laskar continued,"Besides, what can I do if you pariahs have no human decency? You all eat the same rubbish, yelp in more or less the same dialect, and as far as I can see - you all belong to the same casteless breed. In fact if not for your black coat I'd have sworn you were brothers. Tell me, if you buggers don't care for your own, why should I bother?"

Laskar further sermonised, "And come to think of it, I bet you're no better than them. If there were six Blackies and just one Brownie what would you have done? The same thing, my friend, except that there would have been a change in colour. Brown would have got pasted - not Black. Lets face it, dog eat dog is the law of nature. One must just accept it."

Blackie's tail fluttered and he seemingly nodded at me in agreement. I was pleased, for I thought I had made him wiser. Had I changed his life? I cannot tell you the answer for Blackie then just dropped dead."

After finishing his story, Laskar and I proceeded on our way.

Till next time then

Cheers