PAULITICS & PERSPECTIVES aster canine tales .C.’s Cariboo Paul Pierre St. q wt ANYQNE WHO has sus- ‘pected that people come to resembie their dogs, rather than the other way around as the books claim, would be interested in a jetter recently received from a friend in the Cariboo: * “You tell me you're interested in another dog. Well Twill do you a favor. I will not try to foist one of brother Charley's pups on you, In “accordance with the Law of “Genetic Inheritance, they will grow -cup to be stupid and ugly but of tim- ~< itless vigor, like Charley.” (Note please, this friend leans to the view that dogs choose their “masters as role models.) The letter continued: “Speaking .. of dogs, one of the few worthwhile subjects, let me tell you about ~- Dexter, .:“A Chocolate Lab pup, he arrived here in November from the Coast, together with the flu bug, -assorted bills, dumb letters from ‘bureaucrats, exhortations to hug "Whales and trees and other stupidi- ties which puss for ordinary life in Vancouver. : “We thought the moniker Chocolate Labrador Re:~>ver had ‘something to do with tc dog’s ~ color, We were only part right. it mostly refers to his gustatorial pref- erences, which redefine the word _eclectic. . “Within an hour of arriving, ‘Dexter found and devoured the best “damn chocolate cake my wife ever -made. I might have been a little less ‘choked up if the cake hadn't con- ., tained a half a bottle of brandy. ' “He has since eaten one ski boot, a hard hat, a snowmobile seat, two ski poles (not 4 matched pair, ~ of course), one ski, a toboggan pad, two garbage can lids and a garden cart. ; : “His present passion is ; '. coprophagy, surely a pastime of THE GREATER Vancouver Regional District will continue to ‘tap into people’s opinions about » drinking water at public meetings - scheduled throughout the region _ April 12 to 21. “* A number of options will be dis- cussed at the meetings, including future water treatment (rechlorina- tion or chloramination), filtration, future supply, and the seismic sta- bility of the Seymour Falls dam. _ Discussion will centre around factors including health, cnviron- mentand cost. ~ Staff will be.on site at all meet- ‘ings to answer questions. Elected representatives from the GVRD _ Water Committee will be in atten- Water meetings scheduled dubious survival or social value if there ever was one. tlowever, each one is to his taste, | suppose, but! wish he didn't aiso like licking peo- ple so much. “This family was simply unpre- pared for the unbridled, unbounded and occasionally unprincipled enthusiasms of a strong young retriever, He is like a 16-year-old boy with free tickets to a Saigon whorchouse. He is like opening day of the bird season ia Italy. “T must have been a real son of a bitch in some previous life and still haven't got it right, I guess.” With such an introduction, who could fail to drive a thousand kilo- metres to look over Dexter?, At the front gate is a sign: Seware Viclous Dog : You spina few years back. to the days of Duane Witte who put up the same sign on his front gate though his dog was no nore threatening than Mother Theresa. Later, when his wife got a Siamese cat, Duane decided to change the wording to: Beware Vicious Cat Wouldn't you know il, the same applies here? Dexter is clearly delighted to see anybody come to visit, first time or alter many times. “When I saw the sign 1 won- dered why you called him Dexter instead of Sinister? “The sign’s for another owner and another dog. We leftit up in case some delivery truck comes in and Dexter eats off the rear tire in his asuat spirit of friendliness.” As it turiis out, the dog is hand- some as well as friendly. He has a broad chest for breaking ice on duck ponds and heavily bunched muscles on his rear end to take him off to a fast start on the retrieve. He has a pood head with two big yellow eyes set far cnough apart to leave room from some brains. The tone of the rest of the visit to Dexter's house is too well known to dog people to bear detailing. It was all about Deater, the Wonder dog. True, he had his peculisrities, but as any man could see, he was destined to be the boldest, the strongest, the smartest, the bravest, the damnedest dog in wll the Cariboo Country. Had a few worthwhile stories myself about dogs [ have known. | improved thera some, bul not beyond believability. Next morning, about to leave for another place where they tie about horses instead, another car approached from the gate. My host- ess rushed, grabbed Dexter, and began saying “Woof, woof.” “TE have always heard about buy- ing a dog and then doing your own dance to hear the public’s views. Input gathered at these meetings will mark the end of a two-year consultation process on drinking water issues. A decision is expected in Jate May. ; A meeting on drinking water will be held in Vancouver on April 13, at the Robson Square Conference Centre, 800 Robson Square. A North Shore meeting is sched- uled for April 21 at the North Shore Winter Club, 1325 East Keith Road in North Vancouver. Each meeting will begin with an open house segment at 4 p.m., fol- lowed by a GVRD presentation at 6:30 p.m. barking, but] never expected to see itin my lifetime. Cin trying to give him the idea that when strangers come around, you bark instead of wageing your tail," she said. She went arf and then woof woof again and Dexter looked at her, as dogs so often look at humans, in puzzlement and some condescension, He did not bark. The least Lcould do was prepare a second sign to tuck under their Vicious Dog notice, saying: Dog OK Beware of Wife THE NORTH SHORES BEST a SEPARATE ADMISSION FEATURES THE SHADOWLANDS Nichily 7:09pm, SavSun 4:30pm THE WEDDING BANQUET Nightly 9:15pm = incoming framing order. min, $30 - CLEANSING FACIAL [PEDICURE & MANICURE $39) WITH THIS AD We specialize in excellent rejuvenating, hydrating, collegan p Scacne facials using only the finest and purest ingredients. 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