The Dog Code Decoded

Contents

Contents

Old Dog

Strange Tails Indeed

Old Dog

Young Pup

Old Dog

Early Days

Mum

Young Pup

Beachie

Old Dog

Here Come The Dogs

Lucy

My Story

Zuli and Fu

The Word ‘Go’

Young Pup

At the Spit

Fu and Zu

Morning Walk

Pogo the Pug

My Dad

Young Pup

Pet Expo

Old Dog

My Dolphin Friend

Old Dog

Sophia the Cat

Young Pup

The Noodle

Milly & Molly

The Newborn

Old Dog

Fu

My Gig

Old Dog

Raiders of the Lost Bark

Young Pup

Storytelling

Old Dog

The Kelpie

Young Pup

The Teenager

Fu

The Hospice

Yoda

Yoda

New Friends

Old Dog

Young Pup

Family

Jack and Lucy

Pet Therapy

Old Dog

Fu

Canine Dementia

Zuli

The Tradie

Zuli

Waiting

Zuli

Mi Chi

Mi Chi

Mi Chi

Fine Dit

Mi Chi

Dog Park

Old Dog

Nabbed

Old Dog

Memories

Old Dog

My Boy

Old Dog

Jock the Westie and the Rainbow Bridge

Foster Mum

Young Pup

Older and wiser

The Love of a Dog

A Collection of Non-fiction Stories

The Dogs I Have Loved

Ho Chi

Fu Chi

Zuli

Mi Chi

Reincarnation

A Broken Heart

I’m Your Person

Raiders of the Lost Bark II

Dog Lovers

About the Author

CHAPTER ONE

Old Dog

Strange Tails Indeed

Old Dog knows.

I am here every day, and I know it all. But what do I know, you ask?

From the Dog Code, the code that is left behind as markings on trees, lamp posts, wooden seating and food bins all along these streets, every day, by local and other dogs.

There is a newcomer here, and he has left a message. I sniff at the latest spray left behind by new Young Pup. What has he to say about his new life?

Not much. It seems he is still settling in and learning what he can and cannot do in his new surroundings. I am sure that life will be more interesting for him soon, and he will have stories to tell.

I have been walking these streets for years. How long exactly is hard to tell in dog years. It seems size has something to do with telling our age, but it doesn’t seem to work that way for our humans.

On our daily walks, we are all sniffing for that message. Only dogs can share the Dog Code.

Dogs have passed on their messages, their stories, in this way forever.

Welcome to my story of reading the Dog Codes.

CHAPTER TWO

Old Dog

Young Pup

I can smell him, faintly. No, he didn’t go that way, so nose to the ground, I start again. I know his scent. He has been here. My poor old eyes, it seems, are not what they used to be. My eyesight is not so sharp anymore. Not that it matters, as it’s my sense of smell that I need. I have got to keep moving.

But it is not good. I have lost Young Pup’s track. Maybe his owner picked him up and carried him. Humans do that a lot nowadays, especially with the younger ones. They take them around, holding them like some precious cargo. That sort of mollycoddling was unheard of in my day. What is the world coming to? These are puppies, soon-to-be dogs. Put them down and let them run, sniff and explore. Let them sniff scents and eat grass. Roll in the dirt and the sand!

I am panting now, not from the heat but old age. I find everything a little harder to do these days, like trying to find this new pup.

Time is short. I feel greyness clouding my thoughts, and the pain in my joints makes my walks much more challenging and slower than before.

I can no longer stroll along the beach. The sand shifts and jars my spine, so I must stay on the path which I hope will lead me to Young Pup. He needs to know. I lift my leg for one final spray for the day, a marking for Young Pup.

Up ahead, I see my bench where I have spent many a happy time, and I crawl underneath, looking out at the sea. It has been my shelter for more dog days than I can remember. I lie down, feeling so weary. But I am content that I have left a message for Young Pup. The message about the Dog Code.

CHAPTER THREE

Old Dog

Early Days

For many a day, year after year, I was a good dog. I was a quick learner and knew when to stay and sit, not bark too loudly or too often in case it upset the neighbours. I lived in a house with a boy and the boy’s parents, who loved me in their way, but for a long time, I needed more. I loved my boy, but the boy no longer had time for me. He was always busy with school or his friends. I would stick my nose through the gate and sigh, smelling the wonderful, enticing smells from the ocean that seemed so close. Life was quiet and boring. I was a hunting dog. It was in my DNA, what I was genetically bred to do. The closest I got to hunting anything was a pesky rat that lived in the palm trees down the back of the garden, taunting me, it seemed, by poking his nose out whenever I walked by.

One of the few things that broke the boredom for me was when some of the other neighbourhood dogs stopped by the gate for a short while and either sniffed or snapped at me, depending on their mood.

One was a puppy that always seemed pleased to see me. This young pup was so friendly she used to do little zoomies on the other side of the fence, wanting to play. But I had to sit outside the house all day until my boy came home to take me for a short walk around the neighbourhood. It was never long enough, and it was always the same streets. The parents worked hard to keep us all well fed, and I had nothing to complain about; I was just becoming so lazy. It was a life of mainly sleeping and eating, with the odd trip to the vet, which was never much fun, but the family worried about my losing weight and wanted to ensure nothing was wrong. So, as you can see, I was well cared for, but I needed more.

I was lethargic and a little depressed. This family needed a small lap dog, and that was so not me. I wanted to be free, and then came the day that changed everything.

My boy came home and took me for our usual walk, but that pesky rat ran across my path this time! Whoa! What is he doing? I thought. This is it. I’m going to catch you this time! So, I took off hard and fast, not thinking. My collar snapped, and my leash went with it, so there I was, racing down the streets after that dirty rat. Boy! That rat could run and weave in and out. I was enjoying the chase so much that I