Suki

My family is made up of animal lovers. If there is a turtle crossing the road while we’re driving, my father is the first one out of the car to save it, no matter how ridiculous the circumstances. Unfortunately, when my sister and I were younger, my mother would never allow us to get a dog because she thought we weren’t home enough and would neglect it after a few weeks of having it. Even though the answer was consistently “Girls, you know the answer,” my sister and I always asked her again and again if we could get a dog.

When I was in the sixth grade, my mother finally let us get a Shih-Tzu puppy. My sister and I were thrilled. We also found that my mother’s prediction would never come true because even after having Suki for four years, I still frequently run late in the mornings because I am playing with the dog.

Suki has no useful talents whatsoever. She is spoiled and only obeys when it is in her best interest. When bath time comes along, we spend more time chasing her and luring her into the bathroom than we spend washing her. “Suki, come. Suki come. Suki come!” we repeatedly command. Though she is very stubborn, Suki is a very smart dog. She knows all of her toys by the silly names we’ve given them, and she will fetch them on command. She can tell which one is which with almost no hesitation. At the sound of, “Suki, where’s Bushy?” her big brown eyes light up and her tail wags, eager to play as she prances over to fetch her favorite toy.

My uncle is very impressed with Suki’s fetching talent. One year he visited our family from his home in Minnesota, and brought with him a camera just to videotape our dog doing tricks, even though he doesn’t see us very much. “Look at that dog!” he says proudly, “She’s smarter than Muffin!” referring to his now deceased dog. My cousin who visited once was astonished by this comparison. “Smarter than Muffin?” he said, seeming unwilling to admit that this could be possible.

Suki loves to play, and she is very persistent in getting what she wants. I will often ignore her because I’m trying to watch television, and as soon as the television show is over and she has long since given up, I will find numerous toys lined up on the couch next to me, gone unnoticed. Then I feel terribly for ignoring her, so I find her to play with her.

Suki is a very special dog to me; she is the first dog I have ever had, and I will always appreciate her spunk and ability to cheer me up no matter how dreary I feel.