An open letter to my shelter

April 15, 2008

Marshall County Animal Shelter
12th Street
Moundsville, WV 26041

Dear Kind People,

Earlier today, I received a telephone call from one of your interns who wanted to know how Cybill the German shepherd was doing in her new home and whether I was happy with her since bringing her home last Halloween. I regret that I did not have more time to spend describing my situation, but thought that my terse "yes" should be expanded upon.

Approximately 90 minutes earlier, I took Boomer, Argos and Cybill to the Benwood-McMechen Industrial Park for their daily romp. When let off-leash, Argos and Cybill immediately headed into the brush and emerged five minutes later with a freshly killed groundhog. That led to 10 minutes of tug-of-war with the groundhog, combined with the absolute refusal to drop the carcass and the fleeing that ensued from the apparent fear that I would take the groundhog and get all the best parts for myself.

As the three of them played "grab the groundhog" for the better part of an hour across all 20 acres of the industrial park on the railroad side of the creek, I wondered whether they would ever just sit down and eat the thing. Eventually, the fiasco went over the hillside and down to the riverbank, where the groundhog's body received a thorough washing before Argos ultimately took possession and sat down to dine.

During the previous summer, a trip down to the riverbank resulted in a fall on the large rocks that injured my back for a few months. Thus, I am wary of making my way down there, so it was about 20 minutes before I screwed up the courage to go down there and roust the pack. By that time, most of the groundhog had been consumed. Argos, however, was on a small peninsula on the other side of the creek, so I jumped across the creek and immediately sank to my knees in silt.

That's when your intern called.

I should have told her about the groundhog, the chase, the mud and my fear that I may die in quicksand. I also should have told her about Cybill's newfound love of destroying shoelaces. Or about the incident with the bag of frozen burritos. Or the second-floor landing that looked like the South Pole from the shredded pillow. Or the gallon jug of water that she uncapped and carried around the downstairs.

I guess, to answer your intern's question, Cybill is the happiest dog in the world and today was probably her best day ever. And if she's happy, I'm happy.

Warmest regards,
Mort Triffid