Anybody's Dog

The short story “Anybody’s Dog” tells of a boy’s goodbye to a childhood pet dog, one that he didn’t fully understood at the time. The boy’s grandfather helps ease their separation and in the process helps the boy to understand his canine friend. The setting is a long walk in the woods.

When I was a child I had to end a relationship with a pet dog. My grandfather helped me put him down when it was his time to go. Memories of the backside of a barn, soft soil, and a worn shovel have stayed with me all these years. The present story reminisces of that time, but it also goes in another direction, for my dog was the usual kind. He wagged his tail, would shake hands with his paw and would sit on command. No, the present story draws from a very different kind of dog.