I work with animals. Sometimes I have dog and other animal guests staying at my house for shorter or longer periods of time. It’s always fun and many things happen, so I made the ‘adventures’ we encounter into short comics. The protagonists of these stories are my four dogs and my baby goat who I raised.
Loki is a therapy dog, we work with children with disabilities and she also helps me with my English classes ( I teach English part-time). She has been with me since someone threw her over my fence when she was about six weeks old. She turned 9 in August 2023.
Grím is my service dog, we passed our exam two years ago and we have gone everywhere together ever since. He helps me a lot with my anxiety and panic in certain situations.
Bogyó (Berry), whom I just call Trollfarts (she can be really stinky) is a dog that I adopted from a dog rescue organization. She has had many owners before but always ended up back in the rescue, because:
a. she bit the owners;
b. destroyed something;
c. kept on escaping.
So I took her home. She bit the first day, escaped the second, and destroyed something of mine on the third. But I told her, well, it is a challenge that I am willing to accept.
She turned out to be the best nanny dog that I have ever known. Takes care of all the other animals that I bring home, and protect them from others.
Shmarn (Smarni), aka Kaiserschmarrn von Rumpelstiltskin – because alley dogs can also have fancy names – is the newbie. She is trained to be a therapy dog also and as a search and rescue dog. She is as sweet as any puppy but has evil crazy eyes sometimes.
And the goats. For the past two years, I somehow ended up raising baby goats rejected by their mothers. I managed to raise two goats who now have a nice life on a farm and they are sure will never be slaughtered.
Guest appearances are seen from my cats, Dull (Gyagyás) and Stu (Buci).
Oh, and I forgot the most important bit, we live in the capital of Hungary, not on a farm which makes our adventures quite unique as this makeshift pack of two and four-legged creatures try to get by in the big city.
Taking photos of animals
It’s always a challenge, even though the dogs are trained. However, they seem to forget even the most basic commands and tend to act like a bunch of lunatics on the loose.
Family sticks together
Taking care of a baby goat 24/7 AND having a job is sometimes challenging. Sometimes I find myself telling her “Go away, go away” when she attempts to get my attention. And I feel quite guilty afterward.
But should anything happen, we’d be there in an instant. Because you know, if you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us.
Eat Your Vegetables
I hear it many times that parents try to convince their little ones to eat the veggies and the tiny humans refuse. I tried to capture that moment with a dog. In reality, it wouldn’t work. They eat everything.
Newbie
The Human is at Home
Getting home on those rare occasions when I went out without the Four-Legged ones, arrival was a ritual.
1. Get in the house.
2. Loki jumps with joy.
3. Grím brings my slippers.
4. Bogyó stretches on me.
5. Smarni just tries to get everybody off me… so she can get closer.
6. The cats jump on my shoulder.
7. This is usually followed by some growls, me tripping, or telling of everybody.
And how the human does it? He taught them to come one after the other… Smart man.
Waiting for the Human
Pets have an inner clock that is quite punctual. They know and expect their human to get home. They remind me of the Little Prince’s fox who got his heart happy for the Little Prince’s visit.
After a Shower
For some reason, my pets hate showers. With this said, they have no problem swimming in the stinkiest, dirtiest canals. But the shower is a big no-no.
Therefore, they cant wrap their head around our strange habit of taking a shower on a daily basis and they quickly come to the rescue.
The cats take a step further: they attempt to fish you out with their paws.
Dinnertime
Everything is relative. “Just the two of us” and “quiet” mean different things for pet owners and pet-free households.
Dirty Dancing
We were teaching a new trick to the dog. She enjoyed it quite much that she could jump and be caught in the air. It reminded me of the lifting scene in Dirty Dancing.
Jerks
Pets have their own preferences and friends in the family. And their own dislikes, as well.
Social Learning
The social learning skill is heavy with this one. She observes, tries, and sees if others like that. Smarni has a different master for the various aspects of her life.
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