Memories of pets we had growing up
David Fitzgerald
4th son of Miles
Growing up in a rural area, we were able to have numerous pets. Although we rode our horses, they were often more like pets as well. My horse was named Sugar. She was a true pet, as she never grew quite large enough to be ridden. She had a dappled gray coat and we often played more like she was a dog than a horse. I would run down the field trail and she would chase behind. Once I stumbled and fell during such a chase. I thought I was going to get trampled. However, Sugar planted her front hooves and stopped on a dime, inches from my fallen form. Once, when our parents were away for the day, us kids thought it would be great fun to bring Sugar into the house. We did, in fact, and took a picture of her for posterity. Mocha was also a good horse. He was our first. I learned to ride him with no halter, bridle, or saddle. It was scary at first, but with my father and family there watching, I summoned up the courage to ride him. He just went around our back field and came back. After I became more experienced, Mocha would come up near the house, where I could climb on his back via a nearby fence. He would take me down to our apple tree, where we both would feast on delicious apples. I recall we have a home movie of me riding Mocha down to the apple tree, and a bushel of red apples freshly picked. My first dog, although they were actually everyone's, was named Muggy Dew. Before I was old enough to go to school, Muggy Dew would accompany me to the top of a hill, from where I could see the school bus coming home. Then I could see my older siblings get off the bus and meet then at the bottom of our driveway. Another dog we had was named Kirby. My mom said he was a coon hound. I thought he looked like a black lab mix. She probably thought coon hound because of how he howled. You could honk the car horn or play a harmonica and he would begin his attempt at harmonization. He would also play tug of war with you using a stick. It was funny to play tug of war and then honk the car horn to listen to his attempts to howl while remaining clamped on the stick. Kirby was great. We have a cool picture of him with a full cob of dried field corn in his mouth. Our dog named Little was perhaps our sweetest dog. She was a collie mix who loyally lived on our house porch. She was a very relaxed little dog. Once, for fun, I gathered up a pile of lawn grass clippings and piled them all over Little as she lay relaxing on the lawn. Luckily she cooperated, and I was able to get my camera and take a picture of her in that state, with only her head exposed. We also had several thousand cats. That's an exaggeration, but not by much. I found Firecracker running free at a nearby mall, so we adopted him. He would sit on my shoulder as I went for walks through our fields. One cat was named "Lack of Cat," due to its apparent lack of any skeletal structure. It was a laid back sort of cat. This is just the tip of the pet iceberg. I am glad for the pets we had growing up and thankful our parents allowed it.
THE END
David Fitzgerald
4th son of Miles
Growing up in a rural area, we were able to have numerous pets. Although we rode our horses, they were often more like pets as well. My horse was named Sugar. She was a true pet, as she never grew quite large enough to be ridden. She had a dappled gray coat and we often played more like she was a dog than a horse. I would run down the field trail and she would chase behind. Once I stumbled and fell during such a chase. I thought I was going to get trampled. However, Sugar planted her front hooves and stopped on a dime, inches from my fallen form. Once, when our parents were away for the day, us kids thought it would be great fun to bring Sugar into the house. We did, in fact, and took a picture of her for posterity. Mocha was also a good horse. He was our first. I learned to ride him with no halter, bridle, or saddle. It was scary at first, but with my father and family there watching, I summoned up the courage to ride him. He just went around our back field and came back. After I became more experienced, Mocha would come up near the house, where I could climb on his back via a nearby fence. He would take me down to our apple tree, where we both would feast on delicious apples. I recall we have a home movie of me riding Mocha down to the apple tree, and a bushel of red apples freshly picked. My first dog, although they were actually everyone's, was named Muggy Dew. Before I was old enough to go to school, Muggy Dew would accompany me to the top of a hill, from where I could see the school bus coming home. Then I could see my older siblings get off the bus and meet then at the bottom of our driveway. Another dog we had was named Kirby. My mom said he was a coon hound. I thought he looked like a black lab mix. She probably thought coon hound because of how he howled. You could honk the car horn or play a harmonica and he would begin his attempt at harmonization. He would also play tug of war with you using a stick. It was funny to play tug of war and then honk the car horn to listen to his attempts to howl while remaining clamped on the stick. Kirby was great. We have a cool picture of him with a full cob of dried field corn in his mouth. Our dog named Little was perhaps our sweetest dog. She was a collie mix who loyally lived on our house porch. She was a very relaxed little dog. Once, for fun, I gathered up a pile of lawn grass clippings and piled them all over Little as she lay relaxing on the lawn. Luckily she cooperated, and I was able to get my camera and take a picture of her in that state, with only her head exposed. We also had several thousand cats. That's an exaggeration, but not by much. I found Firecracker running free at a nearby mall, so we adopted him. He would sit on my shoulder as I went for walks through our fields. One cat was named "Lack of Cat," due to its apparent lack of any skeletal structure. It was a laid back sort of cat. This is just the tip of the pet iceberg. I am glad for the pets we had growing up and thankful our parents allowed it.
THE END