This was the last
litter of puppies we were going to allow our Cocker
Spaniel to have. It had been a very long night for
me. Precious, our only black Cocker was having a
very difficult time with the delivery of her puppies.
I laid on the floor beside her large four-foot square
cage, watching her every movement. Watching and waiting
just in case we had to rush her to the veterinarian.
After six hours the puppies started to appear. The
first born was a black and white party dog. The
second and third puppies were tan and brown in color.
The fourth and fifth were also spotted black and white.
"One, two, three, four, five," I counted to myself
as I walked down the hallway
to wake up Judy and tell her that everything was fine.
As we walked back down the hallway and into the spare
bedroom, I noticed a sixth puppy had been born and was
now lying all by itself over to the side of the cage. I
picked up the small puppy and laid it on top of the
large pile of puppies, which were whining and trying
nurse on the mother. Instantly Precious pushed the
small puppy away from rest of the Group and refused to
recognize it as a member of her family.
"Something's wrong," said Judy. I reached over and
picked up the puppy. My heart sank inside my chest
when I saw the little puppy was hare-lipped and could
not close its little mouth.
We had gone through this once before last year with
another one of our cockers. That experience like to
have killed me when the puppy died and I had to bury
it. If there was any way to save this animal I was
going to give it my best shot.
All the puppies born that night, with the exception of
the small hare-lipped pup, were very valuable because
of their unusual coloring. Most would bring between
five to seven hundred dollars each. The next day I
took the puppy to the vet. I was told nothing could be
done unless we were willing to spend about a thousand
dollars to try and correct the defect. He told us that
the puppy would die mainly because it could not suckle.
After returning home Judy and I decided that we could
not afford to spend that kind of money without getting
some type of assurances from the vet that the puppy had
a chance to live. However, that did not stop me from
purchasing a syringe and feeding the puppy by hand.
Which I did every day and night, every two hours, for
more than ten days.
The fifth week I placed an ad in the newspaper, and
within a week we had taken deposits on all of the pups,
except the one with the deformity. The little guy had
learned to eat on his own as long as it was soft canned
food.
Late that afternoon I had gone to the store to pick up a
few groceries. Upon returning I happened to see
the old retired school teacher, who lived across the
street from us, waving at me. She had read in the paper
that we had puppies for sale and was wondering if she
might buy one from us for her grandson.
I told her all the puppies had been sold, but I would
keep my eyes open for anyone else who might have a
cocker spaniel for sale. I also
mentioned we never kept a deposit should someone change
their mind, and if so I would let her know.
Within days all but one of the puppies had been picked
up by their new owners. This left me with one brown and
tan cocker as well as the smaller hare-lipped puppy.
Two days passed without me hearing anything from the
gentleman, who had placed a deposit on the tan and brown
pup. So I telephoned the school teacher and told her I
had one puppy left and that she was welcome to come and
look at it.
She advised me that she was going to pick up her
grandson and would come over about eight o'clock that
evening. Judy and I were eating supper when we heard a
knock on the front door. When I opened the door, the
man, who had placed a $100 deposit on the dog, was
standing there. We walked inside where I filled
out the paperwork, he paid me the balance of the money,
and I handed him the puppy.
Judy and I did not know what to do or say if the teacher
showed up with her grandson. Sure enough at exactly
eight o'clock the doorbell rang. I opened the door, and
there was the school teacher with her grandson
standing behind her I explained to her the man had come
for the puppy just an hour before and there were no
puppies left.
"I'm sorry, Jeffery. They sold all the puppies," she
told her grandson.
Just at that moment, the small puppy left in the bedroom
began to yelp.
"My puppy! My puppy!" yelled the little boy as he ran
out from behind his grandmother.
I just about fell over when I saw the small child was
hare-lipped. The boy ran past me as fast as he could,
down the hallway to where the puppy was still yelping.
When the three of us made it to the bedroom, the small
boy was holding the puppy in his arms. He looked up at
his grandmother and said, "Look Grandma. They sold all
the puppies except the pretty one, and he looks just
like me."
Well, old Grandma wasn't the only one with tears in her
eyes that day. Judy and I stood there, not knowing
what to do.
"Is this puppy for sale?" asked the school teacher.
"My grandma told me these kind of puppies are real
expensive and that I have to take real good care of it,"
said the little boy, who was now hugging the puppy.
"Yes, ma'am. This puppy is for sale."
The lady opened her purse, and I could see several
one-hundred dollar bills sticking out of her wallet. I
reached over and pushed her hand back down into
her purse so that she would not pull her wallet out.
"How much do you think this puppy is worth?" I asked the
boy. "About a dollar?" He replied.
"No. This puppy is very, very expensive. More than a
dollar." I told
him.
"I'm afraid so." said his grandmother.
The boy stood there pressing the small puppy against his
cheek.
"We could not possibly take less than two dollars for
this puppy," Judy said squeezing my hand. "Like you
said, 'It's the pretty one'." She continued.
The school teacher took out two dollars and handed it to
the young boy.
"It's your dog now, Jeffery. You pay the man."
I think it must be a wonderful feeling for any young
person to look at their selves into the mirror and see
nothing, except "The pretty one."
***************************
There is a light
that shines beyond all things on earth, beyond the
highest, the very highest heavens. This is the light
that shines in your heart.
Always remember to bask in the "Son" light and never run
faster than your guardian angel can fly.