Since my last update was about cats, and I don’t even especially care for cats, I thought I’d give equal time to something I do care about — dogs. There have been a number of dogs in my life. In fact, I can’t remember them all. We had big dogs, little dogs, black dogs, white dogs, dogs with spots, indoor dogs and outdoor dogs — they were all special in their own way.
Lots has been written about dogs and one thing that strikes me, is that almost all writings about dogs are complimentary and positive — not so with cats (remember a book, “100 Things to do with a Dead Cat?”)
The term dog has made equally as much headway into our language as cat. Maybe I should just let sleeping dogs lie, but here’s some phrases most of us use mentioning man’s best friend:
My dad used to say he was going to see a man about a dog, and we’ve all heard that his bark is worse than his bite and if you’re married, or even if you’re not, you’re sometimes in the doghouse. What kid hasn’t tried the old favorite — the dog ate my homework, and we all know that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Right now we’re in the midst of the dog days of summer in this dog-eat-dog world and it’s been so dry here lately, I’d like to see it raining cats and dogs.
Just like we do with cats, we often use dog idioms in our conversations that have nothing to do with dogs. With the elections gearing up, we’ll probably hear crooked as a dog’s hind leg a lot, and if you’re like me, just listening to the politicians makes me sick as a dog. Some of us tell shaggy dog stories, put on the dog and think we lead a dog’s life because we have to work like a dog. And I often wonder who let the dogs out?
Again, like cats, there are a lot of old wives tales about dogs — like if a dog’s nose is cold or wet, the dog is healthy, that dogs eat grass to induce vomiting or feeding a dog raw eggs gives him a shiny coat. Most people believe that one human year equals seven dog years — according to my extensive research, after a dog reaches 2 years of age, he ages about five dog years to every human year. Also something to keep in mind is that if a dog wags his tail, it’s not necessarily a sign that he’s friendly.
There sly dogs, shaggy dogs, bird dogs, dirty dogs, dog collars, hot digity dogs, hot dogs, lucky dogs, prairie dogs, top dogs, mad dogs, junk yard dogs, hound dogs, and of course hush puppies that will probably be the subject of another blog…..
I’ve heard it said that the world would be a nicer place if everyone had the ability to love as unconditionally as a dog…. hard to argue with that — I’ve always thought the average dog was nicer than the average person, but don’t let your dog’s admiration for you convince you that you’re wonderful.
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