Lessons Learned from A Dead Dog

Stories about dead animals are not very popular.  But, I’m not here to be popular… I am here to teach you a lesson about how to not tell someone that their dog is dead. So, listen and learn.

(I would like to also point out that there is some controversy surrounding this story, as each family member remembers it differently - but this is my blog and my story – so if you are a family member that remembers it differently, then feel free to create your own blog and tell your own stories.)

As a kid, we had a big, black, furry dog named Ginger.  She was a mutt from the pound.  My dad loved Ginger.  Here is a picture of my dad napping with Ginger:

                                        *Actual picture of my dad and our dog, Ginger*

Anyway, my dad was out of town, and through of series of events that aren’t relevant to the story – my mom took Ginger to the vet.  Well, for the sake of time - let’s skip to the end… the dog died at the vet’s office.

My dad was not due back in town for 2 more days, and the vet offered to keep our dead dog until my dad returned.   The remainder of this story will be an example of a lack of communication…

My mom calls my dad to ask him to get Ginger from the vet on the way home.  My dad arrives at the vet’s office and tells the receptionist that he was picking up Ginger.  She goes in the back, and comes back out and tells my dad that they’ll bring the dog out in a second.   One of the vet technicians promptly arrives from the back with a big, black hefty-garbage bag and hands it to my dad.  My dad looks at the garbage bag, and says, “What is this?”

The vet tech replied, “This is your frozen dead dog.”

YES, it appeared as if my mother failed to tell my dad that GINGER WAS DEAD. 

So, my dad thought he was picking up a cheerful-fluffy-alive dog… and instead he picked up a very-frozen-DEAD dog.   Mind-boggling, I know.

Angry dad comes home with frozen dead dog… and yells at poor-communicating mom for failing to leave out the DEAD part of the “Go pick up the dog” request. 

“Poor-communicating mom” blames “You never listen to me” dad - -   She claims she DID tell him and he doesn’t pay attention.  Either way – this taught me several life lessons at an early age:

1. Husbands and Wives generally have a failure to communicate
2. It’s traumatizing for children to see the family pet frozen in a garbage bag.
3. The word DEAD changes the whole meaning of certain sentences.

NEW NOTE:  After my dad read this blog... he sent me this email.. let's consider it "THE REST OF THE STORY" -

 "I began to dig a hole in the back yard and after a half-hour of digging, the hole was the appropriate depth that the vet told me to dig.  The hole had to be pretty deep so that the other animals would not smell and uncover the dead dog.  Well, after a half-hour of digging and wiping tears from my eyes, your mother appears at the back door and shouts - "that's NOT where I want the dog's grave!" "