Ode To My Dog
Meaning pretty girl
The name fitting so well
Your gentle eyes
Twinkling, sparkling
Telling me you want to play
And asking for a belly rub as you lay
You’re my buddy, my partner, my friend
Accompanying me in every way
I feel magnificent with you even if I had a bad day
I see you slouching comfortably on your bed
When I come near, you wag your tail
I tell you to go outside and you act as if you don’t care
Stalking, chasing, and catching rodents is your passion
Alerting us by barking if someone is there
If they’re in our driveway, not letting them go anywhere!
Treats are your ultimate favorite snack
Earning them means performing tricks and stunts
I love you so much, my adventurous dog
Because you’ve always been there for me
She’s the cutest dog ever, can’t you see?
-By Tamara Razinger, written in 8th grade, being one of the many poems that we had to write for our Poem Book
Mina, a beloved dog, was our first, that we bought in 1996, a few months after we moved to the United States. She was born on December 29, 1995 and died on March 16, 2009. She had lived a wonderful 13 years with us and was always a joy. Since I had known her all my life and was my only dog until May, 2007 when we bought my other dog, Pancho, we shared many memories together.
When I was little and had a bad day, I would sit outside and Mina would come sit next to me, and I would wrap my arm around her and talk to her. She made my day, everyday. All through elementary school and middle school, since the bus picked me up to go to school, she would walk with me down to the bus stop every morning and afternoon. Every time, either when I woke up, arrived from school, or just went downstairs or outside, Mina would see me and her ears would perk up as she wagged her tail with excitement.
I have many memories of our walks to the bus stops every morning. One specific memory was when I was very little and I was holding Mina’s leash. Because one of her hobbies was catching little animals such as squirrels, and especially chipmunks, she would see one and run after it. This day, we were just passing by a neighbor’s house and Mina hears the squeak of a chipmunk and sees it and dashes after it with me still attached to the leash. She had carried me a good 5 feet or so, until I finally let go of the leash and began to cry, remember I was little. I had not wanted to let go of the leash, always scared Mina would run away, so I had held on tight, and regretted eventually letting go of the leash. I had many scrapes on my body especially because it was warm enough to wear shorts and a t-shirt and I was bleeding and had no intention of going to school. I’m sure the bus driver had looked at me funny when she picked me up at the bus stop and saw me with tears on my face and blood on my knees and arms.
Another memory I have from our walks down to the bus stop was when we were waiting at the end of the road, where my bus stop was for a long time and suddenly my dog goes crazy. She was sitting down and suddenly starts smelling around and wagging her tail. Suddenly, a moose runs up the driveway, in front of our eyes, and up another driveway without stopping. Mina barked at the moose the entire time and I was scared to death. It was cold, and I remember being under the roof of the neighbor’s house, since that is where I used to get picked up. My mom told me my face was pale after the event, and I told her my legs were weak, all because I had been scared of the moose, who was huge.
Mina always barked to alert us if someone was coming, or if something strange was around, such as a bear or moose. She was a courageous dog, always standing up to animals many times bigger than herself, such as a bear, who once visited our house and Mina ran up to it and barked at it. Mina was a dog who I believed would always sacrifice her life for my family’s sake. She defended the house and my family and loved us so much. The way she always wagged her tail and walked with pride with her bounty steps showed her love. Her favorite thing to do was going for walks, which we always did to the bus stops, but also through the woods. She loved adventuring through the woods behind our house, and going to the stream. She loved smelling all the scents and chasing chipmunks. She also loved treats, as she had learned how to sit, lay down, shake her paw, jump, stay, and find hidden treats on command-in spanish. Mina had an amazing sense of smell, always knowing if something strange was around, which was something we were very grateful of.
My brother and I played a lot with Mina outside, especially when we were smaller and we had invented many games to play with her. We would throw the tennis ball on the roof, just enough so it would fall back on the same side. Then, we would wait for the ball to fall again and try to catch it without it bouncing, before Mina. A lot of times, we could catch the ball, as we are much taller than Mina, but she was very good at beating us too, as she could catch it without it bouncing, also. She had many favorite toys, but she especially liked a green and white one that was plastic that squeaked. By picking up the toy, wagging her tail, walking up and down the stairs and going to the door, she alerted us that she wanted to go outside. She loved to sit at the top of the stairs, as she wasn’t allowed to be upstairs and that was the farthest she could go. She would lay there for hours and watch what we were up to.
When we bought Pancho in the spring of 2007, Mina was very jealous of him. She had always been the only pet, and now another was intruding. It was hard for her to accept him, as he received much attention and always annoyed her. By this time, Mina had begun to grow white hairs under her chin and on her belly. As the time went on, there was an increase of whiteness over her body, probably growing more white hairs from the stress of dealing with Pancho and just plain age. As Pancho grew older, he learned a lot from Mina, which was our intention, and began to get along better with her.
In around 2005, we had learned of a tumor on her front leg, and Mina underwent surgery to get it removed. After the surgery, Mina seemed to have recovered and didn’t show any signs of slowing down just yet. But, in the last years of Mina’s life we noticed many changes in her behavior. Because of age, she wasn’t so athletic anymore, and although she still enjoyed the daily walks, she wouldn’t run, and wouldn’t fetch the tennis ball if you threw it, which she had used to love to do. In the last week of her life Mina refused to eat and do anything. We believed she had some sort of cancer of the stomach and had took her to the vet several times, but she had seemed normal. When I went to school one day, I came home to learn she had died and I remember that day vividly.
As I left to go to school, I remember my mom telling me to tell Mina goodbye, as I remember my mom telling me before, just for fun, in the same way she would say something like “tell your mother goodbye before you leave”. I knew Mina was suffering terribly but still thought she could live through it and recover. On the way to school, it came to me. I thought, this is the day, although I regretted thinking about it. My mom had told me to say goodbye, but not for the time being, forever. She didn’t know that Mina was going to die in a few hours, but God did, and i am so glad I was able to say goodbye that day and hug her one last time.
A few hours after I had left to go to school that day, which my dad later told me the story when I got back home, Mina had a type of seizure and started to throw up stomach acids. My dad took her to the vet, but it was too late.
Mina was a huge part of my life, and I am so grateful to have had her as a dog. We shared many great moments together and I love her and miss her so much. She lived a great and long life, though, and I am happy for that. Mina, may you rest in peace.
This is a picture taken of Mina and I when we had a mini “photoshoot” in the spring of 2007.
