'Nother "Pet" Story About Dave...& His Pig

9 years ago

In addition to Brutus the longhorn bull, Dave had another pet, given to him by a client.

Dave was in construction;
he once re-modelled an old country home for singer Janie Fricke.

I don't know what let to this, & Dave claimed ignorance.
or innocence.
or something.

Janie Fricke had been out of town, & when she got back she called him & said she had brought something back on the plane for him;
would he please come over?

You bet!

It was a baby pig, nestled down in its box of shavings, sleeping.

Dave said Janie claimed the pig had slept through the whole flight, & she gave Dave a baby bottle so he could feed the little porker.

Dave said the piglet slept all the way back to his home, too, although he later speculated that "she must have put wine in that bottle, because that #*$@# pig never slept again in his life".

Pigs are friendly animals, & Hamlet evidently had a large dollop or charisma in his personality;
even though Dave swore he wasn't going to get attached to "this one"...he did.

Hamlet had a wonderful bachelor pad, smooth wire fencing, hay bedding a foot deep, an insulated pig house with a light bulb for cold nights & a small air conditioner for hot days (pigs are susceptable to heat stroke, something about not being able to sweat).

but any way you look at it, it was a pen, & pigs are sociable, intelligent animals;
Hamlet did not like being penned up.

Hamlet figured how to unlatch his gate, & every night he'd open the gate & trot up the driveway & squeal under Dave's window until Dave came down & scratched his ears & talked to him until Hamlet was willing to go back to his pen for the remainder of the night.

Dave put a child-proof latch on the gate & made it a point to spend quality time with Hamlet every day, & that helped for a while, but Hamlet eventually figured out the child-proof gate.

Since the pig showed no inclination to leave home, Dave gave him the freedom of the pasture & yard.

Hamlet roamed the property during the mornings & spent his afternoons on the covered patio with the dogsl
he met Dave's truck every evening & ate supper in his pen.

Hamlet's lived a long life as a pet, coming & going at will between his 'bachelor pad' & the house.

I can't remember what finally laid him low;
seems like maybe pneumonia or asthma, & once again, Dave had the vet come to the house & give his pet an easy exit.

Featured Answer

Sylvia Gordon

6 years ago

I was just remembering, wanted to share again.

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Comments (7)

Jasdip
9 years ago
Sylvia this is the first time I've come to this forum and I loved reading about Dave!! What a wonderful man. You are a great story-teller and do share any other stories you might have about Dave and his heart-of-gold.
Ninapearl
9 years ago
what a great story!!! being mom to 4 pet pigs, i can so relate. dave must have lived a very happy life!
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sylviatexas1
Original Author
9 years ago
These are the only Dave stories that I know that are about pets;
well except for his giant dog Bruiser.

Bruiser showed up at the house one day, gaunt & stinky & with a haunted look in his eyes.

Dave lived in the country, so there was no 'animal control';
you had to call the county sheriff's department.
Dallas County told him that rabies was rampant that summer (it always is) & that all strays, as well as all wildlife about which they received a complaint, were being shot on site.

They told him that he could shoot the dog or they could come out & do it.

Have I mentioned that Dave was a rough-&-tumble macho guy?

He had killed deer for the table, & he had guns in the house, but he put that dog in his truck & drove to the vet.

Vet said there was nothing wrong with the dog that soap, water, & groceries wouldn't fix.

Dave named the dog, had him bathed, dipped, & vaccinated & took him home & fed him all he'd eat.

Bruiser got healthy & his hair became thick & shiny & sleek.

& it turned out that this dog, who had been so skinny that he looked like a hound mix, was probably part Mastiff & part pit bull.

In his prime, he weighed over 150 pounds.

He & Dave loved each other.

Bruiser slept in the bed with Dave unless Dave's granddaughter Alicia, a petite little girl of 3 at the time, was spending the night.

When she came over, the dog abandoned Dave & slept with Alicia.

Bruiser patrolled his territory, kept out all threats such as dogs & mail carriers, & allowed no one near Dave without Dave's okay.

& Alicia grew up, I guess, as secure as any child can be.

The Secret Service couldn't have done a better job.

As I've mentioned before, Dave was a totally macho guy, & he'd never had Bruiser
n-e-u-t-e-r-e-d.

When the dog was abour 14, he began to have some kind or pain or discomfort & he started limping.

If I ever knew what the diagnosis was, I've forgotten.

but the cure was, you guessed it, castration.

It took Dave about 3 weeks of soul-searching, self-torment, gnashing of teeth, tearing of hair, & griping, usually loudly, to everybody else about it, but Bruiser's obvious pain & the misery in his eyes finally got to Dave & he had the operation done.

& it worked!

Bruiser out-lived Dave;
he was bereft at first, but it seemed to help him when he moved in with Alicia & her parents{{gwi:807}} & could continue to do his job as a guardian.

This post was edited by sylviatexas on Wed, Aug 27, 14 at 16:12
Jasdip
9 years ago
Oh, what a wonderful story Sylvia!!! It makes me weepy.You were so lucky to have known a man like Dave. I wish I could have met him!!!

The outcome couldn't have been any better for Bruiser. Thank heavens for Alicia.
JordanWalker
9 years ago
Thanks for sharing this wonderful story of Dave and his pet friends. It seems like he's a very good pet father and his pet are very intelligent too. I like all these stories especially the bull story. It made me laugh while reading it.
Ninkasi
9 years ago
Thank you for sharing your stories about Dave. For a macho guy he had a truly sweet soul.