Every year I watch in amazement,
first at these people who manage to get their animals, by sheer dint of will
and training and plenty of Milk Bones to sit and to stay and to stand still and
to look clean.
Next, to see the parade of breeds, some
beautiful and cuddly, and some looking like they came from the pound. But all
of them groomed and happy to be strutting around the ring. The one that looks
like a mop, the Komondor, is always a puzzlement.
And finally I look at my own three dogs. My dogs
are not ready for prime time. I break the news to them that they’ve lost
Westminster every year as we sit on the couch together and watch the winner’s
parade by. The Best in Show is never my favorite, (as is the case with almost
all of the Oscars), and in the end, I can simply ponder the ordinariness that
bonds all dog lovers together.
Purina had it right; all you add is love. Even
the fanciest and most beautiful of dogs wants the same thing that our lovable
mutts crave. They just want to be loved, to have their bellies scratched, their
ears rubbed, and to lie down and nap with their owners/handlers.
The truth is simple. Dogs are the Universal Messengers
of love. It’s a message decoded that all dog lovers understand.
