Often, dogs are very friendly. They slobber, sniff, relax near your feet. Their furry bodies create a sense of warmth. My dog, Brownie, is all of these things. His brown fur shakes and heaves as he trots along. His pink tongue squirms and licks at my face. His ribcage goes up and drops back down; every time he sleeps.
Most dogs enjoy chewing on white, clean bones. Brownie only chews on brown, smelly ones. His tags jingle happily as the noise of his paws follows along with it. Panting heavily, Brownie circles around the floor; sighing as he lies down. Claws scraping, he manages to turn the bone over towards him; slicing at it with his teeth. Brownie often stares at me with those soft, observing hazel eyes; attempting to lure me towards him. His face also sparks a sense of playfulness; despite being 9 years old; an old age for dogs.

My fingers often brush against Brownie’s fur; providing a relaxing feeling in him. We sometimes sit on the soft, tickling grass outside. Brownie just lays down, like always, and just pants. His pink tongue slurps against the wind. His tail wagging at each caress of my hand. As I sit with him, I talk. I talk about what I’ve done during the day. I talk about him. Brownie never says anything; just listens. His ears will, at times, perk slightly; as if I’ve told him something interesting. Then, they’d resume into their normal position. Surprisingly, dogs are good listeners and understand us humans. They may not say anything, but they listen.

I first got Brownie when I was eight years old, and he was 2 months. He was such a tiny Chocolate Lab puppy! He could easily blend in with the dirt and mud! Love interconnected between me and Brownie; when we first saw each other. I remember running out of my mom’s car; racing to see him. I’ve begged my parents to get a dog for a long time; even showing them dog pictures from an encyclopedia. The dogs in the encyclopedia had certain categories on whether their feeding is medium, exercise is easy, etc. Brownie, well, has a demanding feeding and “easy” – “demanding” exercise!

Since he was a puppy, Brownie always has this crazy ritual; running towards his bowl once hearing the noise of dog food being poured. His pants come out like short outbursts, his legs springing up and down. Once the food is in, Brownie would literally “devour” everything; nose stuck in the bowl, teeth chomping at everything! Labs often need a “high” amount of exercise a day. Brownie is just too lazy. I mean, he gets excited when we take him outside. But often, his legs would give out; and he would just lay down and not budge when I yank at his leash. But, whenever another dog or human approached, Brownie would become a different animal! Literally, he would drag me while panting and leaping on his “new friend.” I always attempt to pull at his leash; but he ends up wheezing and choking at the leash’s coil around his neck. Of course, not wanting to hurt Brownie, I lessen the pull; he recovers only to see that his “new friend” has ran away from him! He then resumes trotting; just long enough until he gets “tired”.

When sleeping, most dogs curl their bodies towards them; tails tucked near. Brownie does that, yet also something else. When Brownie lies down, his usual floppy ears would unfold to the inside of the ear; pointed upwards like a bat. His claws would often stretch; marking against the wood-planked floor. He loves that position; his canine-toothed smile implies that. When lying down, Brownie snores; snoring those soft, audible noises. I don’t know what he dreams about; could be himself; could be me; could be other dogs. Sometimes, he would whine when he “dreams”; as if thinking something bad might happen. Other times, Brownie would wake up suddenly; breathing hard and stretching. Then, he would resume back to sleep. Back to dreaming…all those dog dreams….