Heather I

When I was young we had a Great Dane named Heather. This dog had the patience of a saint. There are photos of me as an infant crawling on her, pulling her ears, and generally sprawled all over her. She never growled. Never nipped at me. She took each transgression in stride, staring up at my mother as if to say; “Really, did you have to bring her home?”. Heather had 18 puppies in one litter. My father built an enclosed pin with a trough to feed them after they were weaned. At this time I also had three ducks. The ducks and puppies and I would play in back yard for hours. Always under the watchful eye of Heather.

All of this changed when we moved from a house to an apartment. The ducks couldn’t make the move. The puppies were all sold. The apartment was a two bedroom with a patio covered in oyster shells. Heather was miserable but I couldn’t see it. However my parents could and one day that sat me down to tell me Heather was going to live on a farm. This news went over like a lead balloon. I didn’t want her to live somewhere else. She was my dog. A farm? Sounded fishy.

They let the news soak in for a week before telling me it was time. I insisted on going with them to get a look at this “farm”. I don’t know why I was convinced they were lying to me and were sending her to Heaven or the pound. We loaded up in my parent’s Torino with Heather taking up most of the backseat which was fine because in those days I liked to ride standing on the hump in middle, hanging my head over the seat to stare out the windshield. The windshield I would be flying through had they made a sudden stop. I don’t remember how I acted in the car but knowing myself like I do I’ll bet I laid on the guilt four feet thick.

We did in fact go to a farm that day. The owners had a son who was mentally challenged. He immediately fell in love with Heather. I immediately felt guilty for wanting to snatch my dog away from him and take her home. We stayed for a couple of hours while Heather got comfortable. Then we left. I cannot imagine the confusion this caused for my dog. I still cannot imagine what my parents were thinking giving away a living creature after having her for five years. I wish I could contact the owners of the farm today and see how she did as she lived out the remainder of her days.