Why is the world so strange and wonderful? There are so many things I do not understand, and I don't have anyone, dog or person, to woof to about them.
Why aren't all dogs like Zip? Zip is a lot older than me, and even if he has gotten a lot smaller since I met him, he is fun to play with. We take turns chasing each other, we take turns biting each other, we roll and jump and box and wrestle until one of us--usually it is Zip--has to hide someplace to get a moment of peace.
Other dogs just are not as much fun. Some are too small, some are too big, some are too old, some are too young. What has happened to dogs, anyhow? Don't dogs learn to play anymore? My mom and dad (dog parents) understood, and they would play with us and they let me play with my litter-mates for hours. Those were the days! We'd play until we rolled into little balls and slept, then we'd wake up and nurse, and play again.
Now, I don't want to speak against my Daddy person, he is all for play and looks for friends for me to play with, but he is (must I say it) too big and too old to romp the way I would like. He can hardly keep up with me and keeps me on this stupid leash all the time so I can't run at my own pace. It makes it very hard to do dog things including play. Anyhow, play is a real problem, and I sure wish I could spend more time with Zip.
And speaking of Zip, he has a friend, Brownie, a small brown cat that is real friendly and comes right up to me to touch noses, just like a real being. So, why aren't all cats like Brownie? Whenever I see a cat, either it growls and hisses and wags its tail--I think it is afraid and is trying to pretend to be a dog who wants to play, but it just doesn't get it!--or it runs away, and in either case Daddy yanks on my leash and makes me leave it.
The same goes for squirrels and those funny little black cats with a white stripe down their back. Why doesn't Daddy let me play with them or catch them and eat them? All my being tells me they are made to be caught and eaten, why doesn't Daddy get it?
And why do supernatural things happen to me? What I mean is, there are these doors in the walls at home and I see dogs in them, they are Canaani dogs with beautiful curly tails and stand-up ears, they have masks and beautiful red and white coats, but they never come out to play.
Last night one of them showed up in my drinking water! Every time I went to drink, there was this dog poking its nose up out of the water, but when I reached to touch it with my nose it disappeared. I tried digging into the water but I couldn't get to that dog.
I don't understand why Daddy lets strange dogs into the house and into the water, either. I wonder if the house is haunted, and I hope the dogs don't come out when I am asleep, and I have to hide all my toys so they can't steal them from me.
And why do ordinary things sometimes come alive? There are some shapes that just make me feel it is something dangerous or something good to chase and eat. I have these marrow bones which really taste good and make me feel like I am living the wild life I was born for. Sometimes they stand on end, and then I am sure it is alive and so I bark it, I charge it, and I call for Daddy to help me. Then I rush in and bite it dead!
And why can't we run in the sky? I look up and I see birds singing and talking, running in the sky, and I want to get up there and chase them but I can't get into the sky like they do.
I try to run after the birds on the beach--I'm sure if I could get close enough I could learn their secrets and be able to fly, too.
And other things appear in the sky, too. Of course there is the hot, bright sun that appears most days (unless it is raining which happens a lot in this country). I think everyone sort of takes that for granted. But sometimes there is another bright thing floating in the sky, Daddy calls it the moon. It is pretty interesting to watch, too. It floats across the sky every night, but sometimes it is there during the day. And it changes shape from night to night. I think if I watch it really closely I will be able to understand the way it changes, and then I can begin to keep track of time.
And the big why, do humans understand us? I work so hard to understand what Daddy wants so I can please him, but he just doesn't make himself clear. And when I try to tell him what I want, he usually doesn't get it. I will admit he does understand me sometimes, and so I have hope that he will get better. But he doesn't really grok dog posture language and he acts as if we only had one kind of bark, he just does not understand the different barks, whines, wheezes, and huffs that every dog learns from his mother.
We are making a little bit of progress, at least most of the time now he can understand when I need to go outside to do what he calls "elimination." If he could only understand simple words like wooof or wuuuf it would be a lot easier than my having to tug at him and then point to the door.
Why can't people be more like dogs?? And as an Israeli dog, I can't understand why Daddy is the only one who groks Hebrew, my native people language. I'm afraid I will lose my Hebrew and then how will I be able to grok the other Canaani dogs--if I ever see one again! I guess I am a bit homesick for my ancestral land.
And why don't people understand what being a dog is all about? Or why dogs domesticated humans? For example, they (the people) are always fighting about what kind of food to give us dogs. Some like to give us from their plates and feed us what people eat. Hooray for them, they have got it right.
We domesticated people so they would cook food for us. If we had wanted to keep on killing and eating prey, we wouldn't have had anything to do with people. People just get in the way of a good hunt, anyhow. Sure, it is fun sometimes to eat raw food, but no meal is complete unless it is hot, spicy, and comes from Daddy's plate.
Even better would be if I could sit at the table like a real Dog. Some people believe that dogs should only eat 'dog food'. Well, I dare them to eat the same thing all day every day, something right out of a can. Or that dry stuff that is crunchy and lacks flavor! Yuck, a dog has to be really hungry to eat that stuff. OK, I can snack on it when Daddy doesn't have the time to cook, but most of the time I would really prefer human food.
So people, listen up, feed dogs good food, the kind you eat yourself. But watch out for the fats, the sugars, and the carbohydrates, we dogs don't want to get fat and sick like you people do. Feed us that old time food, cook it simply but with good spices, and spare us that prepared dog food! The point, dear humans, is that if you want us to please you, you have got to feed us. Didn't you know, the way to a dog's heart is through his stomach?? Why don't people get it?
Well, that's all for now, I'm about why'd out. I've got to go read a book or magazine, I can't wait to sink my teeth into a good book, maybe I will find some answers in a book.
And what has happened to me that I have started to ask 'why' questions? I am only 5 months old and this is all too serious, I am still a puppy and need to do more playing, eating, and sleeping.
Woof,
Keren
(Written when I was a 5-months-old puppy)