I’ve had two incredible dogs in my life, both cleverer than
half the humans wandering around this planet and this story is about one of
them.
Dino was actually my boss’s dog. I did eight seasons in
Corfu, Greece as an entertainer, musician, stand-up comic and general
trouble-shooter when the electric generator gave up. This was April to Oct.. 1989 -1995. so it was for four years
in total that I had the privilege of his company
Dino kinda adopted me cos I was feeding him better than the
boss and he swiftly moved into my apartment. Before I knew it we were a locally
acknowledged item. Where Sal goes, there goes Dino, they would say. And he was
the kind of animal that you could take anywhere, such was his character.
Dino was in fact an American thoroughbred poodle brought
back from the states by my boss, though through being totally un-primped, his
black coat was more Bob Marley than dog show.
I remember removing all these barbs and shit from his coat
and bathing him in my tub, and though he hated all of it, I sensed he just knew
it was all for the best, and he would always brave it out.
No matter where I went, shops, work, disco, there he was as
happy as could be.
Mind you he would not suffer fools. Once, this really
aggressive dog was giving it large around him as we were out on a nice walk. He
looked at me as if to say,
“Won’t be a second, Sal” and went and tore the mf apart.
He ran back to and looked up at me with his twinkling eyes..
“OK, shall we continue with our perambulations now” he
seemed to say, tail wagging again.
I always got the impression that, regulations permitting,
you could pop him in a back-pack with his little head sticking out of the top
and take him anywhere in the world and he would have had more manners than
most.
Also, check this..other animals loved him too…birds, rats,
whoever..he was completely approachable, like a canine guru..and the cats loved
him. They used to rub up against him all the time…and one day (I knew what was
going through his mind by then) he decided to give this cat one, seeing as she
was being so friendly. He mounted her..and got a bite and a scratch for his
trouble..OK ..lesson learned..I was cracking up laughing.
During my 6th season there, Dino disappeared for
the longest time. He eventually limped back to me in a complete mess. Word was
he’d gone crazy over a bitch and had lost it completely and gotten hit by a car
in the process. I patched him up and fed him about twice his body weight in dog
food. He slept so deep. Then at midnight my mate burst into my apartment,
drunk, I’m going..”Drew, shut the fuckin door”, but Dino was gone again….can’t
hold a good man down…
We decided to re-home him at my bosses other gig, way out in
the country and especially away from this madness that would surely kill him.
Last time I saw Dino was when I arrived for my last season
there. I was told he had gone virtually blind over the winter. I sought him out
and crept up. I was ten yards from him.
“Dino” I whispered..
He sniffed a bit.
Then he ran like mad and took a blind leap of faith and up
into my arms.
