I got to innerview Hunter East this week cuzza something humans have a funny word for: Saran-DIBBUH-dee. It ackshully means something that usually ends up bein’ Seriously Cool Kibbles, that happens just outta the BLOO.
So I was hangin’ out in frontta the house, checkin’ out the Really Big pile of bran-chuz, leefs an limms from that Big Storm we had, when a coupla pooches anna man came leash-walkin’ down the street. One large with tidy short hair an one liddle with every-which-way hair. Since I didn’t havva innerviewee yet, I went up puh-litely, innerduced myself and asked if they’d like to be in my COLL-um. The larger one, Hunter, said SURE! He innerduced himself an his dopted sister Munchie an his Dad, Sonny. Munchi’s Hunter’s cuzzin, an her Mom’s workin’ atta big hoss-pittal in Gainesville, so the two poocheeroos are keepin’ each other COMP-nee here.
Since they only lived, like, one street away, I could ackshully WALK there. Hunter was in his yard when me an my assistant arrived. Munchie was nappin’, he said. (An she stayed nappin’ all through the innerview.)
We got situated in the comfy livin’ room, I opened my notebook, an my assistant rooted around in The Satchel for a coupla duh-lishus bacon snacks. As per his Dad’s rool, Hunter hadda Sit Properly for each snack, which he totally did.
Hunter’s a middle size, super laid-back mixture: gray/brown with white places, hansome face, a liddle square jawed, with a slender muzzle and sticky-uppy ears. “I’m all ready to hear your tail,” I told him.
“So, Dad lived way down in My-Amee at the time. He was shoppin’ in Publix when he noticed a pupper – ME – just sorta lookin’ around the store, kinda confused. With no human attached. I was sorta drawin’ a crowd, includin’ Dad, who’s a Total Dog Person. Then a lady said she’d seen another lady come in with me onna leash, then she took off my leash an collar an left the store. I can’t really remember much, but I know I was, like, ‘Wait! What! Where AM I?’
“The frenly store manager came up an gave me some pats and explained that he hated to do it, but he was gonna hafta call Animal Control cuz Dogs aren’t allowed in the store, speshully without a human. Well, Dad was, like, NO! He couldn’t buh-leeve somebody could just abandon me like that, even if they probly were hopin’ somebody’d Take Piggies on me an rescue me.
“Thank Lassie, Dad happened to be there at Just the Right Time. A nice lady in the store got a leash an collar for me, an Dad scooped me up an took me to the vet, who checked to see if I hadda chip, which I didn’t. The vet got me all spiffed up, an Dad didn’t want me to go to the DOG POND, so he decided to keep me till he could find me a perma-nut home. I was totally hopin’ HE’D be The One, an I guess I kinda GREW on him cuz it didn’t take long till Dad ree-lized he WAS. So that’s how I found my Furever Home.”
“Oh, Woof, Hunter, that’s such a great story. Thanks for sharin’. So what was it like at first?”
“I’m pretty sure it might have been a teeny bit more challengin’ at first than Dad had planned. I mean, as a pupper, I felt it was my DUTY to, you know, CHEW Stuff. Pretty much everything, ackshully. Like the sofa, an the coffee table, an the mattress, stuff like that. I had Lots of Puppy Energy. I was Very happy an Very inner-getic. An Dad was Very duh-termined to train me.
Fortunately, I am also Very Smart, so I learned what to chew and what to NOT chew. Now I have lotsa toys I’m allowed to Rip To Shreds. An now, I may, on occasion, chew the random sandal, but mostly I follow the Rools. An Dad knows the Pre-Chew SIGNS: when I’m bored, or want foodstuffs, or to go potty, or need snuggles.”
“So what kinda things do you like to do? Any favrite foodstuffs? Do you travel? How about Pals,” I inquired.
“Um, well, I guess my favrite thing to do is go for Rides with Dad. Whenever I hear the keys jingling, I get Way Excited. We mostly go up to Gainesville to see Ant Erin an Great-Gramma Evelyn. I’m Very Good in the car. OOoooo, an Chiggin! I just hadda chiggin for lunch. Seriously YUM!
“I also like goin’ out in the boat with Dad. He does a lotta fishin’. A LOT! One time I jumped outta the boat, smack into the river cuzza gettin’ real excited when I spotted one of those jumpy sorta fish-lookin’ creechures Dad calls a DOLL-fin. It was just that one time, tho. We go to the inlet jetty in Fort Pierce, an I also really enjoy swimmin’ in the O-shun, an lying in the sun by the pool, an I ’speshully love hangin’ here with Gramma Donna an Grampa Dave, when Dad hasta go do something called GIGS.”
“What’s a GIG?” I inquired.
“That’s what Dad’s job is called: He plays MEW-zick in lotsa different Crispy Biscuits places called VEN-yous here an all over the State. VEN-yous are places where humans do dancin’, an eatin’ stuff, an havin’ adult bev-rudges an laffin’ a lot. Dad’s a Mew-ZISH-un, an he plays an IN-struh-mutt called a guh-TAR. When he goes somewhere to do that, it’s called a GIG. It’s Way Cool Kibbles. ’Cept I can’t go with him. That ‘s the ROOL.”
“Woof! That IS Way Cool Kibbles!” I exclaimed. “’Cept for the part where you can’t go, too.”
When it was time to leave, Munchie was still Nappin’.
Walkin’ home, I was thinkin’ about that cool word – Saran-DIBBUH-dee. The way I see it, after innerviewin’ hundreds of pawsome poocheroos, I think it fits lots of stories about how fellow pets an their Furever Families have found each other.