It's a Dog's Life by Coco
from thrown away pup to wonderdog
by
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Four Welcome To Our Family Cousin Windsor Prince of Palmer, welcome to our family. You made a wise choice for a Mom and Dad, but you want to make sure you start to train them right away, so they don’t develop bad people habits. Being as they are related to Mom and Poppy, your parents are probably smart. Whatever you do, don’t let them buy a CAT. Those cats take up a bunch of attention from the humans and sometimes the cats get better food than us dogs. Then, they make some kind of purring noise and rub on the humans and the humans pick them up and talk baby talk to them. YUCK! I have to drag Oro the cat around by his ear just so he doesn’t get any strange ideas about trying to replace me. While I’m dragging him around I remind him that I’m the favorite pet in the house. One real important thing, Windsor, be very careful not to walk in “bull manure,” because if you do, you have to get your feet washed every time. I only make little tracks on the floor and I don’t think Mom can really smell it, but she goes to washing the floor, and washing my feet and acts grumpy. One time I pretended to fall down in a pile of manure and when I did, Mom started shouting NONOBADDOG. She knows that’s not my name. Oro (the cat) and I hope to meet you soon, we’ll plan on having a big “lizard hunt” when you come visit. Oro can chase them down off the posts at the corral and we can chase them up the trees. Actually Oro is a real buddy, but don’t tell him I said that. Adios, your cousin and mentor from Costa Rica Adios from Oro too! TWENTY NINE And Now, The Rest of the Story - April 1, 2000 I never told anyone what really happened the day I disappeared in March. When I saw Mom pull out that suitcase, I knew it was getting close to the time when it was going to happen again. Mom & Poppy were going away, to Florida, without me. However, this time I had a plan. I had been hoping the yellow chicks would go with me but their mom said no! She never did like me. Well then, I figured I would just go alone. I’d leave a day ahead of Mom & Poppy and get to your house Granny, about the same time they would. After all, I had my trusty map. A little jog to the coast, hop on a ship, bus ride from Tampa to Winter Park and I’m there. Nothing to it. I saw that suitcase and decided I better get going. When it was almost dark I realized I had left my map at home, under my bed, but it was too late to turn back. I was sure I could remember the roads, and when I arrived in Winter Park, I’d call Grandpa Gringo from a pay phone and have him come pick me up. WHAT? If I can read and write and type on a computer, how come you’re surprised I can use a pay phone? What a night! The trip to the ocean was a lot further than I had expected. I was sure I would be sailing on the high seas by the time it got dark. Ended up I had to sleep on the ground, like a dog would you believe, and no pillow or fuzzy bed. Morning arrived and I was really hungry and couldn’t even find a mouse to eat. Plain ole dog food would even taste good at this point. I knew I should have dug up that big bone I was saving, and brought it with me. After some serious thinking I decided to go back for my map and eat a little something before heading out for Florida again. I would probably be a day late getting there but I could still surprise everyone. The sun was beaming down on the road and my little feet were starting to burn, not to mention how tired my legs were from walking for hours. All of a sudden I found a man who had worked for Poppy and he recognized me. He said, “You poor little dog, let me carry you in my back pack. You have a lot of people out looking for you.” (Of course he said it in Spanish, but you probably wouldn’t understand that.) He mentioned that there was a reward out to anyone who could find me, so he was more than happy to make sure I got home safely. We got to the house and Poppy’s hired hand jumped up and down and clapped his hands when he saw that I was safe and sound. I climbed out of that sack that the nice man had me in and ran to see how the new kids were doing. Mom & Poppy had already left for Florida and the new kids said they were going to cry if I left again. They were scared of the big roosters and the mama hens that pecked them if I wasn’t there to show them what to do. After a dish of warm milk and some good ole dog food, I reconsidered the trip to Florida. Those pups needed me to stay and take care of them. It was kind of scary out there all alone in the dark with nobody to love me and no fuzzy bed. Next time if Mom doesn’t take me on the plane, I’m gonna stay right here and guard the farm and patiently wait for Mom and Poppy to come back. They never do stay very long when they go to Florida. And that’s the truth. I really love all of my farm family, even those pesky pups. Love, Coco, happy at home SEVENTY FIVE The Truth About Fish Oil – March 2007 Now, this is the real truth about fish oil. It can cause a lot of problems; I am now an expert on the subject. I sat with Poppy and he read me an article about how good fish oil is for preventing all kinds of health problems. He told me that everyone should be taking it. About that time our friend Bernie drove up with a cooler full of Bluegill Bream that he gave us for supper. Isn’t that a coincidence? We’re gonna have some fish oil just like we read about. Poppy took them over to the big sink he has out by the barn and went to work cleaning them; scrapping off the scales, whatever that is, and putting all the nasty stuff in a bucket. I kept waiting to see the fish oil but all I saw was guts and scales. When Poppy was done he took the whole bucket of nasty stuff out to the edge of the woods and just dumped it out. WHERE WAS THE OIL? The stuff that is suppose to be so good for you. Next day while Mom was too busy to take me for a walk, I went to investigate the oil situation. THERE in the woods was the fish oil, amongst the guts and scales. Everything was slimy with oil and I proceeded to put it all over me. I made sure that I got covered from head to toe and even rubbed my face in it, rolled over and got some on my back, then got on my belly and crawled through it. I wanted to make sure I got a plenty. The hunting dogs in the pens were jumping up and down barking in hopes they could come join me. After my fish oil massage I ran to the house so Mom could see how good I did. Now, to my disbelief, she started all that NONOBADDOG name calling. I hadn’t heard that for a long time. Then she snatched me up and took me to the bath tub and proceeded to scrub off all that good fish oil. I couldn’t believe she would waste such a good thing especially after all that hard work it took to get covered in it. I was trying to get healthy like Poppy. When Mom got done with me I was upset, so I went and took a nap in the sunshine to get dry. I was mad the whole day cause she took off that good fish oil. Granny, the moral of the story is, do not roll in fish scales and guts, evidently you are just suppose to take a pill. Poppy did not explain that to me. Love from Coco, your clean granddog
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About the Book
Living on a farm in a remote area of Costa Rica, a little dog writes letters to Granny Gringo in hopes of getting some advice on how to cope with her problems. There are so many animals to deal with and Coco thinks she is the "boss" of Mom and Poppy's Farm. The bulls kick at her, the cat tries to move in the house, new puppies show up, and the chickens seem to be taking over the farm. Full of humor and love, "It's A Dog's Life, by Coco" will keep you laughing.
About the Author
Author Shirley Price has been an avid animal lover her entire life. Through the years the author has loved, raised, and trained numerous dogs and other animals, but none as special as Coco. Years spent on the farm in Costa Rica with her husband Henry provided an opportune time for the author to observe and document the daily antics of this unpredictable little dog. “It’s a Dog’s Life by Coco” is a work of love that started out with the sole purpose of making Shirley’s mom laugh, but is continuing to entertain dog lovers everywhere with the humorous stories. Friends and family always look forward to receiving a cute Coco communication of notes, postcards and photos. Missionary work was the motivation for moving to Costa Rica but having a farm also enabled the author and her husband to be a part of the lives and culture of the local people. Upon returning to Florida in 2004 and moving to Georgia in 2006, Shirley continued to write letters from Coco to GeeGee until the time GeeGee moved to heaven. Currently working as office manager at one of the campuses for Georgia Sheriffs’ Youth Homes, the author is constantly involved in the daily activities of the children. Each night upon returning home, Coco eagerly greets Shirley at the door with tail wags and barks of joy.