MY DOG BINKY

Binky was part of our family for years; it was as if she had always been there.  We children loved Binky, but this dog had a hard life. She never saw a vet, never had a shot, never had dog food and most important of all, was never spayed.  I am horrified when I remember all this, but this was how dogs were treated in the early Fifties in the South.  They ate table scraps.  They didn't get shots for rabies.  And they had many litters of puppies.  With staggering frequency my mother would announce that Binky was "in heat" and we couldn't let her out. This warning was entirely unnecessary because we children knew that when Binky's admirers assembled outside, panting and looking very intent, puppies were not far behind.  Binky had no interest in her many suitors who came in all shapes and sizes and were incredibly persistent.  But the poor dog had to take care of business and she had no collar or leash, so we children were to guard her virtue during her brief trips outside.  You will not be surprised to learn that our efforts met with an astounding lack of success as eager male canines jockeyed for position, hoping to gain Binky's favors, which of course they always did.  My little brothers and I would run around the yard yelling, "Binky's getting married again!" as we attempted to block contact.  One memorable afternoon our long-suffering Binky had had enough of these brief serial marriages and just decided to go in the house.  As she attempted this Binky belatedly realized that a very small dog had.....become attached to her as it were.  Although he was doing his very best, he was so tiny that Binky had not realized anything was happening.  When she did, Binky decided to teach her little boyfriend a lesson he would never forget.  She began to run around the yard, whipping him about (quite against his will) and refused to release the poor little guy who looked like he was riding the Tilt-A-Whirl at the county fair.  The other dogs could only watch, their eyes wide and their mouths hanging open.  They hadn't had this much fun since marrying Binky a few minutes before.  We children were convulsed with laughter until we saw our mother who wasn't laughing.  She insisted Binky let go of her temporary lover and get into the house right now!  Binky strolled inside very much in command of the situation and the poor little dog staggered away.  He probably had to go into therapy. When Binky gave birth to eight puppies, we noticed that each puppy looked entirely different from his siblings.  And one of them was very,very small.