| Sparky was the product of a pet store enterprise. He
proudly sat in a pet store cage with a $300.00 price tag hanging
over his cage. His price dropped each time that someone bought and
returned him because he was thought to be unmanageable and his price
went down until he went on sale for the bargain amount of $79.00.
His comings and goings in the store were monitored by my daughter,
Lisa, who often visited the pet store and watched him quickly
outgrow the cramped quarters of his cage. That is when she decided
to end his cycle of purchases and returns and buy him for herself.
Sparky enjoyed a new burst of freedom in his new home that lasted
almost a year and a half and then my daughter's marriage fell apart.
Among the many things that had to be disposed of was Sparky; not to
mean that he was not loved and cherished, but pets oftentimes become
the innocent victims of a marriage that has ended. Hope was offered
by the lady next door who had a daughter who had a home in another
city with a big back yard for Sparky to play. That hope was quickly
extinguished on the first night when Sparky quickly devoured a newly
delivered pizza that was left momentarily on the kitchen table. Back
came Sparky and the dilemma concerning his fate was soon renewed.
Having lost a beautiful dog , Sandra, an English Sheep Dog, to
cancer a few years previous that we also truly loved, my wife was
rather reluctant to take on another dog. At first, I was of the same
mind, but upon further consideration, I finally consented and in so
doing eventually won over my wife to the idea.
Because he had gone through many changes in his young life,
Sparky was not only bull-headed, but of a spirited disposition. He
literally destroyed everything in his path. Holes were dug, clothes
were torn up and he ravaged the neighborhood with his constant
barking as he ran around our fenced in yard. Grass was torn up and
he would not pay attention to our calls. Sparky, for all intents and
purposes, was a juvenile delinquent. It would take some doing in
winning him over, but eventually, I did. Instead of the stick, I
applied the over-powering weapon and that is love. He became
"Grandpa's Boy." I would hug him close to my chest and
whisper in his ear and kissed his head and scratched his chest until
such time that I was able to stop him in his tracks with just one
call as he chased after a squirrel or some bird that happened in the
yard. Sparky was at his "High Point" when I announced
that, "It was time to feed the animals." He would burst
out of the door with much enthusiasm and accompany me as I put food
in the feeder for all the other creatures that ventured into our
yard. Neighbors who fed him dog cookies would often remark how
gentle he was in taking food from their hands. Never once did the
vet have to apply a muzzle to his mouth and no matter whether he was
getting a shot or having blood drawn or getting his nails trimmed.
Furthermore, he kept this disposition even until the day that he
died. Yes, what was once an "unmanageable" dog had become
a gentle giant. And he loved babies as he slapped his tongue across
our newest grandson's cheek.
Sparky now occupies a grave beneath his favorite bush. Two of my
other dogs are also buried in our yard. As I told my grandson, we
respect our dead just as much as the United States Marines Corps
respect their own dead and that is that they never, ever leave their
dead on the field of battle even if it costs additional lives to
retrieve the bodies of their fallen comrades. Sparky lived with
honor and he was buried with honor in that his remains were brought
back to the home that he loved and where he was loved in return.
God bless you all, Dear Friends. I look forward to the
time when we will all meet in a better place and most of all be among our
cherished friends, our wonderful and loving pets.
--Thomas Crane, Sparky's Grandpa |
