"Man's need to socialize is true to all creature"
We've got our first high-bred dog in year 2005. My brother named her "mocha" for reasons only he knows. She was the only pet we had at that time and spent all her life outside the house. I feel how she might have felt being alone all the time with no one to talk to, sleep with and respond to her all the time.
She was 3 months old (March 2005) when my dad bought her from the pet shop. During her first 3 months with us, she was well pampered and received much attention from me and my brother Jake. I was about to graduate from high school while Jake, having his summer vacation, is about to be in his second year in college in Silliman University. Over the summer, all we do is play,cuddle and give her morning baths which she obviously hates. Mocha surely felt loved by the two of us.
Mocha is very active and loves to run all the time. She enjoys being chased off and snatching some clothes. She patiently waits for our return with a cute grin whenever we go out of the house. Despite of her "fierce-look" and humongous body built, she is very sweet and gentle. She is very smart and knows when not to mess with her masters. She has her own style of catching our attention; craves to be patted on her forehead and to be touched on her neck. She rattles and run around when one of us would grab her chains giving her a hint that its time for a good walk!
By June 2005, me and Jake have to leave home to attend school in a separate island. Both of us realized what might be her plight with neither of us around. One morning, when me and my brother went out the house with our travel bags, mocha sniffed them through out of her curiosity. We cuddled her for the last time and said our "goodbyes" in our own language which surely mocha didn't understand. She might think that we'll be gone for just a few hours and could see us again by night time- and that all she should do is to wait on the end of the gate for our return. I could really picture her out doing that!
While me and Jake focused on our studies in the University, we have no idea how was mocha doing at home. She might have waited for us for a long time at the gate for our return during the day we left and wondered where have we been and what took us so long. She might felt lonely at some point with no one to play with her and cuddle her the way we do. All we could do is to hope for the best for her.
At the end of the semester, I decided to take my break at home while Jake choose to stay in our dormitory. As I am nearing our gate, I could hear and see mocha barking-rattling happily and appears to be so excited. I was glad she knows who I was after our long time of separation. She hurriedly jumps at me and snatched a lick on my cheek. It might be her way of saying that she missed me. As expected, I spent quality times with her during my stay. By the end of my semestral break, I have to leave her again alone and the same scenario happened with the first time we left her and this continued until I graduated from college and got my degree.
A year after I passed the board examination, I decided to work at my hometown which gave me more time with Mocha, (40 years old in dog years). Though I was with her at home, I struggled give her much attention since my work was so tough on my schedule. I worked 12 hours a day and left me tired and wanting to rest the moment I arrived home.
Mocha's loneliness radiates on the way she acts as I secretly peeked on her on some random nights and days. To alleviate her feeling of loneliness, I convinced my parents that we need more dogs to guard the house as well as give mocha company which i failed in doing so.
Now enters "Gabby", a german shepherd, a same breed as mocha. At first mocha was so cruel towards gabby and seemingly liked to kill the poor puppy. After a week, she might have accepted Gabby and appears to treat him as her own son.They played around all the time and I could see how happy Mocha was with Gabby around. Gabby gave Mocha another reason to live. Though she is relatively old, she tries to play with gabby and spoil his childish acts. Imagine a 40 year old woman playing with a 7 year old kid.
Man's need to socialize is also true to all species. It would be impossible for any creature to be happy alone. They might survive for survival's sake, but the soul dies within.
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