Wolf (Alaskan Malamute)– Wolf is the old guy who used to be homeless and proud of how well he managed on the streets. However, now he’s in a homeless shelter, and although he doesn’t want to be happy about it, he’s really pleased that there’s a bed to sleep in and a hot meal at night. But he wants you to think he could be out there living the free life (if that’s what he wanted do to). He’s never had much in the way of friends, and now he really doesn’t want to bother you, but a he loves a kind word and someone to listen to all his stories about how life was better then, when being a bum meant you had no one to tell you what to do. In real life, Wolf was dumped at our boarding barn as a puppy. The barn manager kept him, remembering to feed him most of the time. Then the barn manager left him (and 6 horses) and never came back. I brought him to live on my farm. He was initially quite standoffish, but now loves to occasionally hand on his head and a dog biscuit or two.
Grace (Doberman) – Grace would be Grizabella if she was a cast member of Cats. Old, stripped of her former glory, more than a bit unhealthy. Her human form would probably be an ex-prostitute, living with AIDS but trying to get as much comfort as she can before she goes. In real live, Grace was dumped as an older dog near my farm. She probably was used as a brood bitch until she got too old. She has a heart murmur, but she still goes out and tries to hunt rats in the barn.
**Paddy **(English Setter) – Paddy is a retired blue-collar worker who always thought he was better than his co-workers. No Schlitz and a football game for him – he’d read and try to get someone to play chess with him. He did a couple years of college on the GI Bill and thought he was under-employed. Now that he’s retired, he sits around watching PBS and the History Channel, only leaving the house to go to the grocery store. In real life, Paddy was probably abandoned in the hunting field because he wasn’t much of a hunter. I got him from the dog pound, where he was underweight and full of ticks. He sticks close to me and likes to curl up on my heated footrest.
**Jake **(Doberman) – Jake is a 26 year old guy who thinks that it’s still cool to act like a drunken frat boy. He thinks he’s a tough guy, but he doesn’t really know what tough is. Still, his heart is in the right place, and if he saw somebody having car trouble, he’d stop. If he wasn’t too busy. In real life, Jake was on outside dog in a tiny yard. When his owners decided to move, they only wanted to keep one dog, and that wasn’t Jake. They tried to sell him on Craigslist, but no one was willing to pay their price. I told them I loved dobes and had a farm and after two weeks they called me and asked me to take him.
Maggie (Standard Poodle) – Maggie is a soccer mom. She’s a former cheerleader. She’s so busy managing everybody else, she doesn’t really think about herself. She’s truly thrilled when her kids get an A or bat a homerun. She’s the classic helicopter parent. Hyper-enthusiastic about whatever project she’s called upon to do for the PTA or the brownie troop, Maggie doesn’t sit still except to watch The Young and the Restless. In real life, Maggie was bought as a puppy by a former co-worker who thought she needed a standard poodle because that’s what the CFO of our company had. She’d never had a goldfish, let alone a dog, and didn’t have a clue about the responsibility and emotional commitment that goes into having a puppy. She got rid of the puppy because “it follows me everywhere!” Want she needed was a stuffed animal she could play with for 5 minutes a day, then ignore.
**Papi **(Siamese) – Papi’s a cigarette smoking size-2 bitch in designer shoes. She can hold a grudge like nobody’s business. She hates her fellow women but loves men (dogs).
Sabrina (Siamese mix) – Sabrina is the kind of woman who always says “Don’t mind me – do whatever you want”, but then pouts if she doesn’t get her way. Passive-aggressive, I guess. She gossips about her “friends”, but is always sweet to you. In the back of your mind, you just know she’s backstabbing you to her other friends. The more she wants something from you, the sweeter she gets. But she really doesn’t mean any harm by it; she’s just saying what she thinks you want to hear. In real life she was dumped at the pound because her former owners had a baby and decided they didn’t want a cat around it.
Nick (Black and white cat) - Nick Storm, private eye. He’s sort of like Spenser (detective, not poet). Big, bulky, but not fat. Tough on the outside, mushy on the inside. He’s a watcher. He thinks most people are untrustworthy, but if you’ve earned his loyalty, he’s eternally faithful. Nick was picked up outside of Wal-mart as a kitten.
Spike (Grey cat) – Spike had been the kind of boy who would give you a hug, then on his way out to play he’d pinch his little sister. He learned a little empathy somewhere, and now he’s the protective big brother. Although he still likes to tease, he’d thump anyone else who made his sister cry. Now he’s about 18. He thinks he’s grown up, but he still wants someone to do his laundry. Spike supposedly stayed with me for a week while my niece was having work done on her apartment. She never took him back.
