I climbed up the steps, as an avalanche of golden retriever puppies leapt to their feet and poured across the floor to jump up against the gate. Wagging tails, happy yips, bright shiny eyes. I clambered over the kiddy gate and waded through the sea of excitement…
\”Come in dear,\” said the old ladies voice. \”I\’ll just stay here in my chair, and you can sort them all out.\”
The room showed a lot of signs of puppy. Chewed chair legs, torn holes in the dog bed, and little puppy footprints. They were all wanting to come inside, but I\’d shut the screen door, gently, in their faces. Mum dog was resting peacefully on her bed.
\”I\’m sorry about the mess,\” she explained, \”but my leg is giving me a bit of trouble – I wrenched my knee playing golf last week, and it\’s slowed me down a little bit. I have to be back on the course for a tournament in 2 weeks, so I\’m trying to stay off it as much as I can.\”
\”Those puppies are looking pretty lively,\” I said. \”How are you coping with all of them?\”
\”My daughter has been doing most of the looking after of them since I hurt my knee, and when the kids come home in the afternoon after school they let them out in the yard and play with them for hours.\”
\”Any health issues with them?\” I asked.
\”No, they\’ve been fine, though I\’m more than ready for them to go to their new homes, I tell you!\”
\”I\’d better get into it then,\” I said.
I went out onto the deck, armed with a stethoscope and thermometer. They were like peas in a pod, all pretty much the same to look at, so the old lady had put a different coloured collar on each. There were 7 of them! As soon as I stepped out they mobbed me, chewing on my toes, sharp teeth sinking into my ankles and making me jump. I examined each in turn, checking for any umbilical hernias, heart murmurs, or anything else that might be wrong. They were all tickety-boo.
Then I went out to the van and made up all of the vaccines, and got the microchips ready as well, with their reams of paperwork. I waded back into the fray, and jabbed each in turn with their vaccination. Finally I implanted a microchip in each one, carefully noting down the colour of their collar on the forms, and making sure the correct sticker went with the same colour. All the time I was having to detach sharp little teeth from my shoelaces and legs, or stop them jumping all over me. Finally I could escape inside and sit down in peace for a long moment of filling out all of the paperwork.
\”Goodness, they are pretty full on, aren\’t they?\” I said
\”Little devils,\” she agreed. \”A lot of fun, too, though. We are keeping one for my grandson – he\’s autistic, and has a real thing for animals. I\’ll be happy and sad to see the rest of them go. They\’ve all got homes, and I\’ll be counting down the days until they can go, I tell you!\”
\”Give it at least a week for their bodies to react to the vaccine, and you\’ll be free of them!\” I said.
\”Yes, it will be nice to get back to just the one dog…\”
We chatted away about the world for a few minutes, then I gathered all of my rubbish, forms, and so on, and waded back out through the puppies and made my way to the van.