Smokey & Dusty

The next pets to shaped my life were Smokey and Dusty. Smokey was first. As a pup she was gray. Her fur later turned brown, but we couldn't change her name. My mother all ready had an Aunt Brownie.

Smokey was a small dog so, at first she didn't suffer from the leash laws as Suzie had. She was a member of our family for three years before my father, a U. S. Marine, was stationed in California.

In California, soldiers cared for an abandoned pup that made his rounds begging for food. Then the M.P.s (Military Police) heard about the stray. Dad and the other soldiers chased the dog into the field while the M.P. s tried to track him down. Later dad brought the brown dog, Dusty, home to live with us.

We couldn't give Dusty or Smokey an ideal life, because homes on military bases or most rental properties didn't have fenced-in yards in those days. Often people weren't allowed to install fences on rental properties, either. The dogs spent much of their lives tethered on a chain.

Whenever possible, we let Dusty and Smokey into our house, garage, or fenced-in patio. They were well trained animals and both dogs lived long lives. Dusty, the stray that once outran M.P.s, lived about 10 years and died while exploring a cotton field in TN.

Smokey, the smaller dog, survived a fire that destroyed my mother's home. She ran through the flames and singed off most of her fur, but received only minor burns. When her fur grew back, it was again gray and people said that her name was truly prophetic.

To the best of my memory, Smokey lived 16 years. As a lone dog, she spent those last years indoors. For her, chains were history.

One thing I learned from these dogs is that life in suburbia is much more satisfying and far less complicated when you have a fenced-in yard. Both children and pets have their own safe space. What could be nicer than lounging in a deck chair with a good book while your child tries to teach the dog to catch a Frisbee?

Over the years my biggest regret was often that my fences weren't taller or even more private. Some of you in suburbia know just what I mean.