Attila

When I wrote about Sheba I said we told my son he could keep one of her puppies. He chose a little male with Doberman markings with red where the tan should be. He looked like a miniature Doberman.

My son named him Attila. His full name was Attila Thor Doberhound.

Attila grew up with the kids. He thought he was one of them. He knew he was different somehow but he was one of them nonetheless.

If the children were watching Saturday morning cartoons Attila was right there with them. He sat on the edge of the couch with his front legs standing on the floor.

One of his favorite games was hide-and-seek. If he was "it" he would wait for them to hide and then go find them. If one of the children was "it" he would go hide until he was found.

Attila was fast like his father. And he could climb. More than once we found him walking along the top of the fence that enclosed our back yard.

He drove the dog catcher crazy. One day I heard a commotion outside. Attila had managed to get out of the back yard and was on the front sidewalk. The dog catcher tried to catch him but Attila was too fast. The dog catcher grabbed a round net that they use to throw on top of the dog if it runs away. The dog catcher was throwing the net but Attila was too smart for that. He ran along the fence. When the net was thrown it landed against the fence at an angle and the dog just kept on going. The chase was concluded when I opened the door to the house and Attila rushed inside.

We were moving so my brother-in-law agreed to let Attila stay with him for a couple of days. Attila got out and disappeared. It was a week or so before we found him.

Someone had hung him by his hind legs from a tree using wire to hang him. His back legs were severely damaged. The vet said it would probably be best to put him to sleep. My second son told him no and that he would take care of him.

Several times a day the dog needed to have his wounds cleaned. Then medicine and bandages were applied. It took a long time because there was practically no skin left on the backs of his legs. Finally Attila was healed. The vet was surprised that the dog was like he was before and not all crippled.

We had Attila for a few years more. One day he disappeared. We never saw him again.