我老爸是一昧溺愛,那我老媽呢?
大概三年前,寒假回家過節。陪著老媽在超市買菜時,我瞄到一旁的珠寶店裡,有個漂亮妹妹抱著一隻很幼小的哈士奇,坐在櫃臺後面。。
我一向不是很喜歡小狗,尤其是基因改造太過的一些品種,像是什麼茶杯杜賓、八哥之類,明顯不自然的種類;覺得太不尊重物競天擇的守則了。會養錢錢,純粹是因為我老爸身體差,弄不來大狗。而哈士奇是我很愛很愛的狗,不但是因為它高大威猛、威風凜凜,主要是它長得最像老祖宗(狼啦)。
所以,看到了一隻幼犬,我很心癢的就拉著我媽去跟人家套交情。就這麼一動念,狗狗就此來到我們家裡。
不過呢,我很清楚我老媽是個狗癡(同路癡);在她心裡,哈士奇跟約克夏基本上沒有分別,"都是狗"。所以,在決定要帶它回家前,我很鄭重的警告她,哈士奇是大型的工作犬,尤其它又是公狗,成年後可以輕易的到達八、九十磅,比我媽還重。它絕對不可以光是關在家裡養;它要教、要管、要遛,跟錢錢是完全不一樣的。
我媽聽著聽著,還沒拿主意呢,我老弟在旁邊大聲拍著胸脯說:"沒問題,我來!" 事情就此定案。(事後證明,我老弟講的話,比他叉的狗屁還不如。狗屁嘛,你起碼還嗅的到;我弟講的話啊...)
說過了,我在放寒假。狗狗進門沒幾天,我也就閃人了。但光是這幾天,買尬。
先是名字。我雖然說了它會長得雄壯威武,但是知道我媽沒概念,我還是上網找了成年哈士奇的照片給她看。我老弟呢,一看就愛上了,覺得牽著這隻狗在路上走,簡直帥到爆燈,一定要取個好名字。所以呢,從 Apollo、Achilles、Zues、到 Hercules,幾乎整本希臘神話翻了一遍(其時正好是布兄的 Troy 全國放映中)。最後我媽不耐煩了,桌子一拍:"就叫狗狗,不要再囉唆了!"
老娘發威,誰敢不從?
好啦,去抱了狗、付了錢、到了家、進了門,不得了;錢錢呲牙咧嘴的撲上來狂叫了起碼十分鐘。好笑的是,叫是叫得滿大聲;可是等狗狗湊上前去示好,它要嘛躲進沙發底下,要嘛就拼命爬到我身上來尋求庇護,爪子刮得我破皮流血。我要摸、要抱狗狗,錢錢就叫得快斷氣。從狗狗進門到我回學校,整整三天,同樣的場景重複又重複,沒完沒了。
三天後,我閃人回學校。然後呢?
據說,狗狗長到了六個月大時,就被流放到後院去了。原因是 "跟錢錢處不來"。自從它來,就大大的搶走了我老媽的注意力;錢錢又嫉又恨之餘,對狗狗就從來沒好臉色。狗狗倒是很憨厚,一直都很想跟錢錢和平相處、甚至一起吃喝玩樂,但是錢錢就是不領情。
它小的時候也就罷了;但長到六個月時,狗狗的身型比錢錢大了三倍有多。雖然還是很 "和善",但是玩耍時的隨便一爪子,就可以把錢錢翻上好幾個跟斗。這麼一來,錢錢更是把狗狗當眼中釘、肉中刺,每天又是憂鬱、又是陰鶩的鬧彆扭;撒尿拉屎絕食,什麼都來。
終於,我媽投降,把院子角落圍起來,把狗狗放養在裡面;什麼管、教、遛,通通進馬桶。又過一年我回家過節,看到它可憐兮兮的圍在鐵絲圈裡唉唉叫,覺得好氣又好笑。問我媽有沒有定時遛它,她振振有詞:"我哪裡牽的住它,上次帶出去,它一衝,差點把我拐脫臼耶!"
我弟呢?我在家一個禮拜,只見到他一面。在忙什麼?鬼才知道!
就這樣,三年過去了。我不只一次說,要把狗狗帶回學校跟我一起,我媽就是不肯,堅持 "它在後院很開心,哪裡都不用去"。我呢,看著狗狗在洛杉磯八月份的大太陽底下喘氣,恨不得把它剃的光光...
說真的,我媽不是不疼狗狗;畢竟,現在我們都離家了,她也就只能跟狗狗、錢錢相依為命了。只是她這種"便利至上"的養狗態度,我真的沒辦法認同。唯一值得慶幸的是,狗狗長大,起碼跟小時候那種騷動不安比起來,沈穩得多了,不會像從前那麼一天到晚想 "投奔自由"。
現在就等著哪天錢錢回老家後,狗狗就能晉級到室內狗了吧?(其實心裡還是很想把狗狗據為己有啊)

不是我要說啊!人家漂亮妹妹養得好好的,妳家裡已經有錢錢了,而且你又不住家裡,幹嘛硬要妳媽再養一隻狗狗?結果害牠只能淪落為後院的深宮怨婦!我看你還是把她帶去亞特蘭大好了,跟小花(大狗應該比較不會那麼神經質吧)作伴。 以前帶狗去看一個老獸醫時,老獸醫總是強調如果家裡已經有一隻狗了,就不要再帶回第二隻,不然老大會吃醋忌妒(小花還小,也許有玩伴高興都來不及了,根本不會吃醋)。
No no no~~~ it's not my fault!!! I didn't 硬要我媽再養一隻狗狗!! My mom saw the puppy and fell in love with him; I didn't try to convince her!!! Actually, I tried to educate her prior to getting the dog (see the part where I highlighted), she just couldn't resist!!
I read a vet's blog, I wish I could find it, that raisins, grapes, and onions are toxic for dogs. Be careful not to feed your beloved dogs with these food items. Lucky for chan-chan.
That just goes to show you how uneducated my parents were... They were NEVER animal lovers, and never thought pet care was "important"; in their opinions, "dogs are just dogs, nothing special". How they end up loving $$ and GoGo, I have no idea...
I love animals, especially dogs, as I grew up with dogs. I wanted to, however, I do not have the courage to work in animal shelters; neither would I watch programs such as Animal Cops; nor any stories on animals being abused. I get depressed, and angry about it; and yet I feel very powerless not being able to help animals in need of help.
I know exactly what you're saying. Sometimes I'd accidentally land on these channels, and such stories simply just piss me off. I wish there's better rules and regulations for these kind of things, but it's just hard. But still, American dogs are still far more lucky than Taiwanese dogs... some of those Taiwanese news about animal abuse or neglect really make me want to kill!! Sigh.