My Poodle, Droopy, was very tiny when he came in. On arrival he gave my smelly shoes one look and right away, challenged them to a duel.
I named him Droopy after the famous pet detective cartoon character. Afraid of the lightning, the couch was his base.
His daily routine included using my cool glass coffee table top as his ice skiing ramp. At his peaks, I was once a proud owner of one draught glass, and the rest of my glasses and coffee mugs were casualties of his ski ramping adventures.
The toilet bowl came in handy as his drinking hole.
Pity poor Droopy, especially when guests would drop nuclear bombs in the toilet, when he was thirsty.
He remained my best friend in the world, especially during my dark days. For years on end, he treated me as his personal slave and our commitment to each other was very mutual indeed.
One Friday night after a heroic night of binging with my mates, I was passed out on the couch (Droopys’ bed) when my peaceful sleep was disturbed by the most horrible sound. Think a mix of Scottish bag pipes and Zebras’ vuvuzelas and you get what I mean.
Waking up thinking it was intruders, I was more than ready to stick my dukes up. Instead I found Droopy barking endlessly in my smoke-filled kitchen.
I had forgotten that I was in the middle of fixing myself something salty when I decided to get some shut-eye whilst waiting for the meat to fry.
He was not only rewarded with the chunk of meat, but I also gave him unlimited hugs and kisses.
Droopy continued to be my best friend until I lost him to a mad driver, passing by. I cried, then stopped crying eventually because I came to the conclusion that he took his rightful place in dog Heaven, where he lives in a mansion with pearly gates with very appropriate watering bowls in every room and his very own ski park.
Traditionally, almost every household owns or has owned a dog during their lifetime. Children love to play with dogs to a point where they become a part of the family than merely being their companion.
Dogs are fundamental pets to have because they are similar to human beings. You can tell from their expressions of emotions and general social behaviour. Like if they lie beside you or constantly watching and trying to copy whatever you do.
In Gaborone, people are developing an evolving cultural attitude towards dogs. Dog breeding is undoubtedly becoming a booming business entity that is slowly becoming a way of life for many.
Long time friends turned business partners Kabo Phoi, Oteng Phirinyane and Keith Sebolai operate a backyard dog breeding, grooming and obedience training business.
With similar University qualifications in Finance from TUKS and Rhodes University respectively, they decided to go in to business together based on their common interests, dogs.
Based in Tlokweng in their backyard they breed pure Boerboels that are internationally accredited bloodlines from the Kennel Union of South Africa. A dog from them cannot cost anything less than P8000.
“The females go on heat around twice every year,” explains Phirinyane. “We anticipate selling at least 10 dogs every six months.”
Law enforcement agencies and security companies are always looking for dogs from the trio.
Trained dogs can be sometimes preferred because they have supernatural ability to track down criminals or lead forensic detectives to crime scenes such as drug patrols and ‘bomb scares.’ To this day, renowned scientists around the world are still baffled as to why dogs bark at the moon.
