The Long Ranger,
Had his Tonto.
And Mr. Ed?
His human.
Jeannie had,
Her bottle.
And Skipper?
His Gilligan.
Trigger had,
Roy Rogers.
And Abbott?
Costello.
The Marx,
Brothers had,
Each other,
– and Zeppo!
Manny and Moe,
Have Jack.
And Oscar?
Felix Unger.
And you have,
Me – aren’t we lucky,
We get along,
Famously?
I wanna be,
The next,
Rin Tin Tin.
I wanna hang,
By my chinny,
Chin, chin.
And somehow,
Cleverly,
Escape.
With barely,
A bruise or,
A scrape.
Getting thousands,
Of letters per,
Week.
Eating hundreds,
Of barrels of,
Meat.
A canine star of,
Hollywood,
Movies.
A furry reminder,
– Etched in pop,
History.
If I became,
The next,
Rin Tin Tin.
I’d let you take,
My Oscar out,
For a spin!
Today we are skeptical over self-designed titles
But one dog’s intelligence has lives long after his death.
Jim the Wonderdog certainly made people lose their breath.
Considered undesirable compared to the others in his litter,
Jim went for much less than the other pure bred pups at home.
Ultimately he is the only one who now in history is known.
Even his master thought Jim a lazy dog
Sitting idly in the shade while the other dogs trained
But when they went out hunting it was Jim who wouldn’t be contained.
Once he and his master were put hunting
And the man declared it was time for a break
And to the designated tree he made like a snake
Unsure if this was merely a coincidence
The master called out many types of trees around
And each it was at the right tree Jim could be found.
It soon become clear that Jim understood words
He even understood other languages and oddly could make accurate predictions.
He correctly predicted the World Series and Kentucky Derby without qualifications.
Here are some links to find out more about The Wonder Dog Jim!!
Before the 1930s all disabled persons were totally dependent
On family, friends, and whomever they could hire
As 19 year old Frank learned this was a position most dire.
He had hied a boy who left without warning
Blind Frank was unaware he’d been left alone
This even happened when he was far from home.
Clearly people did not have the right stuff
To perpetually tend to another human’s perpetual needs
And then Frank heard of Dorothy, a woman working miraculous deeds.
She trained dogs to help soldiers in World War I
Who were blinded by mustard gas and in constant need of help of their own.
Then Frank knew that he too need never be scared, left all alone.
His father wrote to Dorothy about his son
And Dorothy invited Frank to visit in Switzerland in return
It was the begging of a new phase, a new idea would now churn.
Dorothy selected two dogs to determine the most compatible.
Ultimately it was Kiss who proved the bear fit,
Frank renamed her Buddy, and for the rest of her life by his side she would sit.
He showed the people in the US that a dog could accomplish what most people could not
She guided him from the ship across the busiest street
And with the press watching it made the success that much more of a treat
Frank promptly relayed the news back to Dorothy in a word “Success”
Over the next decade over 250 dogs would help those who were blind.
And in 1938, Buddy was the first dog to ride in a airline cabin.
The rivalry between cats and dogs is more an expectation than fact
We let them in our homes and expect that they will compete
But it’s not true of most, having a home makes them complete.
Ginny is a marvelous example of a dog who lived cats.
Before she had a home where she was loved and applauded
Ginny lived in a place of abuse, and people most deplorable.
She and her pups lived locked in a closet
Until one day they were rescued and taken to a shelter.
It was here Ginny would find a loving home instead of living helter skelter.
Her owner was disabled after an accident.
When he saw Ginny he knew what live meant
After signing the papers her new home is where Ginny went.
It wasn’t too long before Ginny was returning the deed.
But cats and kittens were the creatures she saw most in need.
An odd little habit that gained her attention indeed.
First Ginny saved kittens trapped in a pipe
Something her person thought no more than a fluke.
His opinion changes quickly, the initial assessment he would forever rebuke.
For in the remaining years of her life
Ginny saves more than 900 of her feline friends
And that is how a real happy story ends.
You Can Find Out More About Ginny By Going Here: http://www.ginnyfanclub.org
Hachikō was a lovely golden brown Akita living in Tokyo.
The breed was rare, with only a few left at the time
But it was because of this dog’s love that the breed gained fame
A simple act from a simple design
And forever the dog’s breed would be known for the same.
Every day Hachikō greeted his master at the train station
For roughly a year it was their constant routine
Until one day when the professor did not come home
He had died while at school, an event entirely unforeseen.
Still the dog came to the station every day like a canine metronome.
At first people waiting were somewhat annoyed
This dog came every day for no apparent reason
Hanging around until the last train had run
At five o’clock Hachikō was there, regardless of season
Until one day someone realized it was on hope the dog had come.
Hachikō waited every day for his master, waiting for the day
When they would again be united for their walk.
Although it was a routine of little more than a year
People realized it was what the dog knew, and they started to talk.
Eventually the story reached one of the professor’s students’ ears.
He was an expert on Akita and the tale captured his attention,
And so he followed the dog home with eager anticipation.
There he learned why it was the dog waited and what the dog sought.
For nine years the dog never failed to show at his destination,
And his loyalty earned his breed a reputation and he was their mascot.
One of the most renowned authors of all time
Is one Fyodor Dostoyevsky, a man who wrote
Both from imagination and from experience.
It is from one source that his heart was truly smote.
For the man was imprisoned for some of his life,
Bound to a system that was full of pain and reluctance
To forgive or forget any crimes that had happened.
One creature stood apart from the system’s harsh sentence.
This dog made it into one of his stories,
And it is tough to untangle how much of it was truth
How much was fancy, but it is easy to imagine
Even Dostoyevsky must have found solace from a similar dog of youth.
On his way back to the barracks full of pain and despair
Dostoyevsky would encounter Sharik full of life and bounce.
And in no time at all the author’s spirits were lifted
Watching the dog prance and pounce.
Sharik lived in the prison, had no single master.
He was their mascot, the glimmer of hope.
Enormous he was, with black fur with white spots,
His excitement unleashed, his love an open envelop.
Though the convicts would ignore him and leave him alone
On his first day Dostoyevsky showed the dog affection.
He petted the dog and gave him some bread.
In return the dog sat quietly by wagging his tail and full of dedication.
The next day when the weight of the sentence brought the man down,
Thinking dreary thoughts of how the days would all be the same
Sharik yelped and ran to his side, wiggling and jiggling a gleam in his eyes,
It was then that Dostoyevsky could finally make his despair tame.
Two dogs’ names stand out, synonymous with determination
Balto and Togo were made of the strongest stuff
Sled dogs in Alaska, both were unbelievably tough.
Of their courage and perseverance we can’t say enough.
Their courage and story inspired a nation.
When the small, secluded town of Nome began suffering an epidemic,
Medicine was sent from Seattle to help stem the tide
Of children who suffered and would likely have died
If not for the dogs who would not run and hide
For the trip to deliver could have been called suicide.
Because of the winter and terrible weather
Getting the drugs to the needy was a difficult feat
The only plane that could make it had an engine that would not heat.
So desperate were the people, the runners would not allow defeat.
Instead of a plane, it was on sleds the medicine took a seat.
Togo took the most challenging leg
His master driving the team through the most horrific terrain,
Pushing and moving Togo’s team would not restrain
Themselves from doing their best, not seeking fame,
Until they reached the next team in the line.
Balto and his team took over from there,
Running through some of the worst whiteout conditions
Unmindful of their perilous position,
Their single-minded goal was their final destination.
They were to meet the next team and then they should stop.
When they reached the next team, they were all asleep.
So Balto and team kept right on going
The town of Nome was something worth knowing
Meaning they learned it in case, they had no need for slowing.
Because of these dogs’ courage, the kids turned out just fine.
Everyone’s heard of the strong rivalry
That exists between the dogs and the mail
But did you know it hasn’t always been true?
Even more did you know a dog worked as well?
It’s really quite true, this unusual tail,
A dog and his job obliterate the taboo.
Dorsey was very likely a mutt
Because dogs were desired for work more than breed.
There are pictures of this lovely dog from the press
Looking like a lovely mix, so proud of his job.
In the 19th century they wanted most to succeed.
There was never an if, and, or but.
It started when Dorsey decided to rest
On the Post Master’s doorstep one day.
Too tired to move or to run away,
The Post Master soon adopted the dog
With no hesitation, without a delay.
It wasn’t long before Dorsey got his first test.
The Post Master had a mine at quite a distance
This stray that wondered up to his door
Was capable of a quite a good bit of good
With interesting insight, the Post Master attached a letter.
Dorsey wagged his tail took off like a commodore.
Later Dorsey returned in all of his postal vigilance.
And so was born the first canine postal occupation.
Dorsey delivered mail from Calico to Bismark
With such punctual gusto it was quite a show
And years later more people would know
Of this amazing dog and his postal bark,
Songs were sung of his dedication on this regular marathon.
Here is a version of the song by Kenny Rogers!
Chota Peg was not your average spaniel, not by a long shot
This dog was a traveler of more than epic proportions
He was the pet and sidekick of one Commodore John Anderson
And the tales that they had needed no distortions.
They were both on the crew of what once happened to be
The world’s fastest ocean liner, a ship called the United States.
One story of them is recounted with pleasure in the news,
Of watching them arrive with splendor we can’t duplicate.
Anderson saw Chota Peg when just six months old in a New York pet store,
Falling in love he took the pup home and decided to take him abroad,
They spent the next thirteen years on ships, the decks they did trod.
For thirteen long years the sea and each other were what they adored.
Their first trip together was on the Italia, the start of a unique friendship,
It was the beginning of a relentless obsession
Traveling the globe, it was their most prized possession.
They always came back with new tales to tell, adventures happened on every trip.
Thirteen long years and that small little pup grew up
And then he grew old, Chota Peg was never alone
And he got a different experience with getting windblown.
Together they sailed over million miles, and a long last bond they did develop.
