A Dog's Dream

He flopped down onto the wired floor and draped his small, gray paws over his ears, straining to block out the lonesome yowls and pitiful whimpers. Nothing was right here; no happy chirping birds, no vast starry nights. All there was in the small, in closed room were rows  of stuffed cages, each containing a filthy, unfortunate animal.

His beady black eyes followed a fly through the dusty air as it landed on the tip of his dry nose. Sneezing softly, he shook his head, irritated and sat back up. Reaching over with a paw, he dragged his water bowl over the metal cage floor, causing a few cats to glare in his direction and hiss in annoyance. The little dog eagerly thrust his gray muzzle into the bowl, hoping for a drink of thirst-quenching water, but it was empty. Disappointed, he pushed the bowl away.

There was a metallic clicking sound and the windowed door swung open. A little girl with blond pigtails skipped in, looking at each stray animal in the room. Immediately, the dog felt the awakening of the other dogs and cats in the room. Some leaped up in excitement, yipping loudly, while others would look up hopefully, as if expecting food. The scruffy mutt was already accustomed to people coming in to look at the animals. He recalled once fiercely barking at the visitors while wagging his stumpy tail, mixing in all the tricks and stunts he'd been taught to try and get their affection.

Now, all he would do is perk up his triangular ears, and look around to see if the old lady was here. No one though, would even bother to glance at the flea-bitten dog, cowering in the corner of the cage.

The dog remembered once seeing a beaten up tomcat being dropped off by a man. He remembered the horrifying state the silver tabby had been in. Torn claws, shredded ears, clumps of missing fur, an unconscious body, and a bloodstained pelt flashed viciously through the mutts' head. Not more than a couple heartbeats after he'd been brought in, the cat was taken out of his cage, brought out into another room, and never seen again.

Shaking the depressing memory from his pulsing head, the mutt's throat burned with thirst. His stomach growled ferociously along with the aggressive collie in the cage next to his. He was unaccustomed to not being fed whenever he barked, and not having fresh water always waiting for him. What had happened to that nice, old lady who always stroked him kindly? The dog faintly heard the pigtails girl leave, but he was too overwhelmed by his memories to take notice.

It had been a warm, sunny morning when the lady wouldn't respond to his daily yapping. He had sensed something gravely wrong. The lady wasn't breathing. After nearly barking his throat out, the dog had finally gotten on the neighbours nerves and they stormed into the old lady's house. Moments later, a loud, flashing car had arrived, and within heartbeats, the old lady was lifted into the car and driven off. After that, he faintly remembered being chased around by a man in white with a net before ending up in the cramped cage, which he'd never left more than a few times.

A family with two naughty-looking boys walked in, chattering loudly with one of the people who sometimes fed the dog. They strolled casually around the room, studying the cats as they twisted their tails and flicked their ears in interest. No luck again. The family was looking for cats. The dog wished more than anything to get out of the room and leave with a family of his own. He'd seen some cats and dogs leave with their new families, but those were only the animals in top condition, and even they were skinny and abused.  

Sighing unhappily, the dog closed his eyes, trying to get some sleep in the noisy room. Suddenly, the shrill chattering of humans appeared next to his cage. The dog's eyes flew open, and his hopes soared. One of the two redheaded boys squatted down to look at the dog, but stood back up with a disgusted look on his face. The mutt whimpered softly and let the disappointment engulf him as the boy pointed at the collie in the cage next to his while squealing in excitement.

Placing his chin on the metal wire and placing a paw over his muzzle, the dog stared drowsily at the dog in the cage directly in front of his. He was an old Golden Retriever, so old, that the mutt had never even seen him stand up once; he'd always eaten and drank on his side. His muzzle was lined with silver hairs as if he had plunged his nose into the moon, and his pelt had lost the silky touch of a regular retriever pelt. Twisted fuzz now covered his pelt, dull and dusty. The mutt knew that the old retriever was deaf; he never responded to anyone, and the other dogs had said so too. If there was any dog in the room that needed a good home more than himself, the mutt decided, it would definitely be the old retriever.

The mutt closed his eyes again, trying not to think about the poor, elderly dog, and fell asleep, dreaming about his new family and all the affection and love they would provide him with…