Thursday, September 28, 2006 It's a dog's world By Henrylito D. Tacio Regarding Henry
A MAN seeking a hotel room for himself and his dog received the following reply from an innkeeper in Kingston, Jamaica: "I've been in the hotel business for 40 years and never had to eject a disorderly dog.
Never has a dog set fire to a bed. Never has he sneaked a girl into his room. Never has a dog stolen a towel or blanket or gotten drunk. Your dog is very welcome. If he will vouch for you, you can come along as well."
This reminds me of a dog owner in New York's Central Park who was overheard as saying, "All of the good things that have come to me have come through my dog." And there was this epitaph on a dog's grave in Maryland read: "Major: Born a dog, died a gentleman."
The English word "dog" is derived from the Old English "docga," which means "powerful breed of canine." The French "dogue" and Spanish "dogo" as in "dogo Argentino" are borrowings from English.
In breeding circles, a male canine is referred to as a dog, while a female canine is called -- would you believe? -- a bitch.
Among animal scientists, if you say you have a dog, you are actually referring to the domestic pet dog, "Canis lupus familiaris."
In some instances, the word dog is also used to refer collectively to any mammal belonging to the family Canidae (as in "the dog family"), such as wolves, foxes, and coyotes. Some members of the family have "dog" in their common names, such as the African Wild Dog. The constellations Canes Venatici, Canis Major and Canis Minor are named from the Latin word for "dog," for their perceived resemblance to dogs.
So much for that! Several proverbs have been written about the dogs. Consider the following: "A house without either a cat or a dog is the house of a scoundrel" -- Portuguese. "Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noonday sun." -- Indian. "Those who sleep with dogs will rise with fleas." -- Italian. "If you are a host to your guest, be a host to his dog also." -- Russian.
After all, the dog is man's best friend. And woman's too (I've seen a lot of movies where dog was the female lead character's best buddy). Will Rogers once commented: "If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went." American novelist Thomas McGuane has the same idea when he wrote: "I'd be happy to have my biography be the stories of my dogs. To me, to live without dogs would mean accepting a form of blindness."
Why are dog so important and so loved? "A dog," explains American humorist Josh Billings, "is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself." Andy Rooney also said: "The average dog is a nicer person than the average person." American journalist and novelist Christopher Morley reasons: "No one appreciates the very special genius of your conversation as a dog does."
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux urges: "Love me, love my dog." Why? English author Samuel Butler replies: "The great pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself with him and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself too."
Some people compare an individual to a dog. Please don't do so. John Holmes stated in a fact: "A dog is not 'almost human' and I know of no greater insult to the canine race than to describe it as such. The dog can do many things, which man cannot do, never could do and never will do."
American author John Steinbeck pointed out: "I've seen a look in dogs' eyes, a quickly vanishing look of amazed contempt, and I am convinced that dogs think humans are nuts."
Sigmund Freud contends: "Dogs love their friends and bite their enemies, quite unlike people, who are incapable of pure love and always have to mix love and hate." Spanish guitarist Andres Segovia added: "Among God's creatures two, the dog and the guitar, have taken all the sizes and all the shapes, in order not to be separated from the man."
Ever wonder why dog is man's best friend? "The reason a dog has so many friends," someone once said, "is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue." Ben Williams has another idea: "There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face." George G. Vest gives another reason: "When all other friends desert, he remains." English satirical poet Alexander Pope penned: "Histories are full of examples of the fidelity of dogs than of friends." Mordecai Siegal puts it in another vein: "Acquiring a dog may be the only opportunity a human ever has to choose a relative." Dogs have given us human beings some lessons in life. Ladies, listen to the words of advice from Ann Landers: "Don't accept your dog's admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful."
But are you still wondering I am writing this piece about dogs? I think I have to quote German novelist and short story writer Franz Kafka to answer that: "All knowledge, the totality of all questions and all answers, is contained in the dog."
