Excerpts from Chapter Nine of the same name in my farming memoirs - 'Old McLarsen had some Farms... Book1- Brave Beginnings'. (Want full story ? Link below in comments)
Once upon a time, there was a fairy tale about an ugly duckling that turned into a swan one fine day. Hans Christian Andersen wrote that. Once upon a later time, there was a true story about an ugly dog that turned into a hunting heroine on many moonlit nights, and I wrote that. She was Trixie, the ugly Kangaroo dog.
An unattractive black and tawny yellow brindle, that's how Trixie's coat was. Poor girl, her ugliness meant that her sole reason for being a member of the family relied on her unmatched talent as a successful hunter. She was a vital inclusion on shooting trips, and so all else was tolerated... barely.
"She endured much for those few short times to shine—didn't she?" We both feel sad, remembering the deeply dug-out area around her kennel. It had been worn down by her constant pacing back and forth, to the limits of her heavy chain. This was not the way we believed animals should be kept—under any circumstances.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Trixie was a Kangaroo dog; a little-known breed along the same racing lines as a Greyhound but three times the bulk, commonly mistaken for a Great Dane.
Trixie's line was developed from the Greyhounds and Scottish Deerhounds, to create a suitable dog to come to Australia with the earliest settlers
I discovered that it had actually been a thoughtful breeding of several carefully selected dog bloodlines to combine all the desired qualities. These breeders were looking for speed, acute eyesight, tough feet, thick coat, powerful body and excellent stamina. All of these would be crucial to the survival of the pioneers. So would the skills of scenting, running down and catching animals—like emus, kangaroos and wallabies—for human and pet food. The dog they finally bred up to was the Kangaroo dog; a mighty hunter, capable of dispatching his prey with one crunch of those mighty jaws. His protection of flocks of sheep against dingo attacks is legendary.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Just a thought, from poet and writer, Douglas Mallock—
Thorns may hurt you, men desert you, sunlight turn to fog;
but you're never friendless ever, IF you have a dog.
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A Meme-oir Anthology
Cerita PendekA collection of memes, tales and quotes I have collected in the last couple of years. Older ones have come from my 'A Miscellany of Meme-oirs' and 'Seeking Serendipity', now being combined and added to newly created works in this 'A Meme-oire Anthol...
