Tod

TOD is the acronym for the name of a huge, incredible dog that adopted my wife as his human female. Tod's name was derived from his position in his former family. He became "The Other Dog" after he charmed his way into their lives and became their second canine pet.

After our neighbor's divorce Tod stayed with the husband and was consequently abandoned by his former mistress who took with her their first animal. This was an event that broke Tod's heart and left a huge hole. My name is Ad Gartenberg and I became Tod's best friend behind my wife Janae' and his canine girlfriend Jazzie.

The evening after my wife and I closed on our new home we drove to it for another look before the movers arrived the next day. It was dark when Tod paid an unannounced visit and frightened me beyond description. Nearly paralyzed with fear, my wife came to my rescue and coaxed Tod to allow her to pet him. When she did he mournfully whined and was reduced to a pile of quivering, slobbering black fur.

Tod is a beast in the truest sense. A mixed breed of the combined Bouvier de Flandres pedigree and a mystery variety, the huge animal stands about three and a half feet and weighs nearly two hundred pounds. His fangs, of which half are permanently, partially on display below his upper lips, are as long as my fingers. His growl is convincing and can be as terrifying as the MGM lion's.

This is a story about Tod, my wife, our son, our neighbors and me, along with other critters we acquire along the way. The antics of these beasts and our human reactions may sometimes seem far-fetched. In spite of the fanciful narrative what happened changed our lives and made our place lively and more livable.

Most of the happenings portrayed parallel real incidents from a time in the author's life. Although he has liberally exercised the privilege of literary license the reader will never know where and he could offer convincing testimony to anyone who thought they could tell.