We didn't try to kill Pit-A-Pat, or lose Dilly, or steal Roover, or pour guppies down the garbage disposal, or let someone run over Ming, or break Tina's leg, or abandon Heidi, or let Tootsie wander off, or give Mom a dog she didn't want, or neglect Ginger.
We actually all liked and were good to Molly.
1. Pit-A-Pat
We lived in Reseda, California when I was four years old, and I was given a black and white kitten. Oh, joy! Then, she mistakenly fell asleep on top of a warm car engine - with fatal results.
A tragic and tearful end for my cute little fluff ball. Pam Being only one, I don't remember a thing. Robin
2. Dilly
Dilly was a blue parakeet. His name came from the song "Lavender Blue, Dilly Dilly." Mom used to sing that song to us. We loved Dilly until one day when I opened the back door while he was out of his cage, and he quickly darted out to the freedom of the backyard. I was only four years old, but I was devastated! Pam and I spent a long afternoon shaking little brown bags with birdseed inside to lure Dilly back. I remember the long shadows trailing across our backyard lawn from the trees at sunset. Robin Dad told us that the bag-and-birdseed trick would work. Pam
3. Roover
And now a tale of misguided youth: I guess I must have wanted a dog because I lured a stray Golden Retriever into the furnace room of our duplex on 5th North in Logan. Several times that day I stealthily sneaked food into the basement door at the back of the house. It was not a fated companionship, even though Roover wagged his tail and never barked, because the neighbors across the street found their missing dog the next day. I can't even imagine what Mom and Dad said to the owners. By the way, I did confess when I was asked if I'd seen a large, gold dog. Pam
4. Ming Toy
I think my cat's name was Ming Foo, but Pam insists not. It doesn't matter at this point. She was a Siamese kitten. We only had her for three short months one summer until she hid on the top of a car tire and was run over when the car backed out of the driveway. She was a very vocal kitten, annoyingly so. We have since found out that the Siamese breed is natually vocal. Robin Who would name a female cat "Foo" anyway? Pam It was the 60's - who knew what Foo meant? Robin
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| That's Ming up on the top of the car. Mom is doing her usual pose with something in front of her face (she hated having her picture taken). Aunt Joanie is in the passenger seat and Dad can be seen reflected in the window lower right. |
5. Heidi
We got a Dachshund named Heidi on Christmas morning. Pam and I went to Salt Lake to visit Aunt Joanie during the Christmas break. When we got home, Mom had given Heidi to Uncle Ken and Aunt Pauline. She had piddled once too many. Robin I hadn't had time to bond with Heidi, but I was surprised to learn that she was gone. What I want to know is: Who kept thinking it was a good idea to introduce animals into our family? Pam
Aunt Pauline later became my primary teacher. One week Heidi got into the box of primary stuff and chewed a section of one of the bandalos. Wouldn't you know it - it was mine. Robin
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| Looks pretty good for being 53 yrs old. |
6. Tina
Tina was a delight. We went to Ogden and bought her from the pet department of a hardware store. She had been named Trudie, but I wanted to name her my absolute favorite name: Tina. She was a sweet, fawn colored Chihuahua, but she wasn't easy to house train. She loved to sit between the curtains and the sliding glass door in the early morning sun, and she also hopped up into Mom's bed in the evening and get warm in the curve of Mom's body. Tina followed me out the front door one afternoon as I was hurrying to leave. The screen door flipped closed behind me and it broke her leg.
I loved being greeted by her sweet little self when I would come home from my Sophomore year of high school One day I came home to find out that Tina had been run over by a red Mustang (car). I shed a lot of tears that day. Robin Tina was Robin's dog. I spent most of my time attending classes at USU, working, or studying on campus. Our bedrooms were on opposite ends of the house on different floors. No one told me that Tina had died. I guess I was self-absorbed then, but I was sad to eventually hear the news because I liked little Tina. Pam
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| Sweet little Tina |
I didn't like Ginger. There, I said it. She would spend the night on the service porch so I was the first one to greet her in the morning as I came up from my room downstairs. She was always happy to see me and her sloppy, drooly, puppy-self would try to jump up on me for attention. The only attention she received was a quick shove out of the way with my foot before she put a run in my nylons. Poor Ginger. Robin It troubles me to report that I don't even remember Ginger, especially in light of what I wrote about Tina. There may be an explanation, though. I lived with my best friend, Cindy Harris, during one quarter in a funny apartment around the corner from the Capitol Theater (now Eccles). I postulate that Ginger came and went during that time. Pam Mark says if he is holding a dog it must be Ginger.
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| L-R Cowboy on black horse, Mark, Ginger? Todd Datwyler, Cowboy on Palomino horse |
8. Molly
She was such a pretty Shetland Sheepdog, and I remember that she had "papers." Mark named his dog Molly, so her name was entered as Mark's Molly. She had natural herding instincts, proved when she managed to escape the house in the morning and attempt to herd the children walking to school. Molly loved peanut butter, and we laughed at her efforts to lick it from the roof of her mouth. She wasn't supposed to venture beyond the line where the kitchen linoleum met the carpeted part of the house, but what dog has ever obeyed that rule? When caught, she ran like mad back to the kitchen where her toenails propelled her in a skid well beyond the mark. One time she even piled up against the wall in the service porch.
I moved to Wyoming for my first year of teaching in August of 1969, and the rest of the family moved to Las Vegas. Somehow, I thought Molly was moving with them, but she was given to a family who lived in a rural part of Cache Valley. Once again, there was an unexpected parting, and I sincerely grieved. Pam My memories of Molly are few. She was a soft little bundle to have on my lap. She greeted me when I came home from high school but I was so wrapped up in my busy life that Molly didn't play a big role in it. Maybe that's why she stayed healthy and uninjured. Robin
9. Charo
She was a Chihuahua given to Mom for her birthday. This was in Las Vegas, so I'll let my siblings talk about her. Oh, one thing I remember was Mom putting Charo in Mark's old playpen when she was being house trained. Pam Charo barked a lot. Yes, I know she was a chihuahua but I guess I had been spoiled by the quieter Tina. She didn't like the grandkids as they arrived one by one and was always put out in the backyard when we came to visit. She aggressively barked at the children through the window. One day when Mom thought to let her back inside, she wasn't there. She had gotten out somehow and was never seen again. Robin
10. Tootsie
A desert tortoise who didn't know he/she was a pet. My recollection is that she was part of the desert upon which Mom and Dad's home had been built; she just hibernated in the backyard. . . or something. Pam Mark had much more interaction with Tootsie than I did. I know she hibernated in the circle of sand that was inside the barbecue pit. She had belonged to our neighbors, the Temples, across the street. They had two tortoises and the dominate one kept pushing Tootsie into the swimming pool. So Temples gave Tootsie to Mark. Robin
And about those Guppies: I was only three, and I don't remember why I thought pushing that chair up to the sink was a good idea. Pam
We have all since had pets with good experiences to relate. We aren't perfect as demonstrated above but we learned from our mistakes and our subsequent pets benefited greatly. (Sorry Amy and Peppy)
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