In this post: A veterinarian wants a pet to add to his family, but it ends up being at his family's expense.
Category: Short Story Collection + Fast Fiction
Ramiah Recommended?
Yes.
First, why are all these short stories sad? Lol.
This story is about a veterinarian named who didn't have a dog growing up, even as an adult in his own animal medicine practice but and then, one day a dog is literally dropped on his clinic's doorstep. The dog seems well trained, the kids seems to like it, and all seems well but then the dog lashes out at a shadowy figure in the night.
The owner thinks the dog is okay but just easily spooked out. Then a son gets scratched by the dog's teeth. They think it's okay and then the dog bites another's ankle. They take it to be trained (harsh punishment with an electric collar). They think all is well until a truly devastating and scary situation happens. The dog bites their daughter on the head and won't let go. They bring out the punishment remote which is the only thing that stops the dog. The dog narrowly missed the girl's right eye. The author puts the dog down.
The author tries really hard to make this pet work. He was immediately watched to Pirate, finding more reasons to keep him than not. When the dog showed signs of aggression, there were justifications made 'he couldn't really hurt them if he wanted to', 'he was just scared,' 'we'll get a trainer'. It seemed he was holding on because of his personal desires (he never had a pet that was 'just his'), believing in fate, and wishing to see the better of the dog.
The family, especially the wife, was concerned about the dog's behavior. She wanted the dog to be gone long ago. Only when a kid was severely threatened did he listen.
This story touches on a lot of themes - what's the role of a pet in a family's life. How important are pets? When do we listen to signs of danger?
Read for yourself here and share what you think!
Ramiah Reflects
Questions to Ask Yourself (and answer!):
How important are pets?
When do you listen to signs of danger?
Ramiah's Re-read When
Re-read when:
You'd like to read about a rescued dog
You want to contemplate the important signs of danger
See below for my book notes:
(No notes this time, folks!)
Check out my other posts and book notes here.
Until next time!
Montana Houston
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