A Dog’s Tale
By Juliet Marillier | June 4, 2015 |
This is a dog story. Not just any dog story, but one that illustrates triumph over adversity, the importance of small joys and the role of a writer’s companion. Some of you will have seen Harry in my official author photo – he brings his own special something to my life and work. He makes me take breaks and exercise regularly. He ensures I don’t take myself too seriously. He keeps the other canines in the household under control. He is a neighbourhood character, well loved by all. But it so nearly wasn’t so.
In late 2010 Harry was surrendered to an animal rescue group – a small white curly-coated cross breed, filthy, skinny and terrified. His age was given as three, though most likely he was older. On the way to the shelter, while being transferred between cars, Harry escaped and took off into what we in Australia call ‘the bush’ – in this case a densely forested area. The animal rescue people searched but he could not be found.
A community of Buddhist nuns living on an isolated property kept glimpsing a little white dog on the fringes of the monastery grounds. He was too scared to come close, but they left food out for him, and after three weeks living wild Harry was apprehended again. At his vet check it was apparent that he needed major surgery on his knees. I volunteered to be his foster carer during the pre and post-op periods.
I’ve had foster dogs come and foster dogs go. This one was different from the moment he came in the door. It took me around thirty seconds to decide that this frightened little soul was a keeper. He wasn’t especially pretty or particularly friendly. There was just that intangible something between us. By the end of the recovery period Harry had settled in as if he’d always lived with me and my (then) household of two tiny girl dogs.
The following year tested both Harry and me severely.
Whatever had happened in his former life had left Harry terrified of unfamiliar dogs, a fear he demonstrated with aggression – barking, growling, lunging forward and, when off the lead, charging toward other dogs even if they were four times his size, then bolting in terror if they responded. It’s called ‘prey behaviour’ and is bad news. He and I worked on this and were making good progress when he was attacked by a group of large, uncontrolled dogs while off the lead. His injuries were bad enough but the psychological impact was far worse. Behaviour-wise we were back to square one. Also, I was now fearful too, and not prepared to trust him.
So, I joined my local dog training club and committed us to one night a week of obedience training. Not such a big thing, you say? Oh, yes, it was. Long ago I was the overweight, short-sighted kid who was always last in the race, last to be chosen for the team, laughed at on one occasion by my whole class (and the teacher) because I looked funny when I ran. I was terrible at any sporting activity and knew it; I hated my own body. And somehow that outweighed any number of academic achievements. Sadly, that imbalance has stayed with me for most of my life. I’ve never played sport as an adult and I’m physically quite timid. So joining a club where the activity was physical as well as mental was a stretch for me. And there was the time commitment – a whole evening a week when I wouldn’t be able to write!
Well, here we are three years later. Harry and I are still members of the club, and have made many friends along the way, both human and canine. It has been a long haul for both of us, with progress sometimes hard for me to see. But the feedback of trainers and fellow-handlers has confirmed for me how far Harry has come. We’re now at an advanced level among clever border collies and smart German Shepherds, and there’s my boy performing with remarkable accuracy and style (and me alongside him managing the weaves and spirals and turns at least adequately.) This year Harry has obtained his first title in the sport of Rally-O, which combines agility and obedience. This despite ongoing health challenges. The most wonderful aspect is seeing him confident and happy around other dogs, and throwing himself into the work with bright eyes and enthusiasm.
The day we won our title, I felt an elation quite out of proportion with the achievement itself. It felt bigger than signing a new book contract or winning a literary award. On reflection I realised that there were two stories in this. One was about a little dog who overcame his terrors and handicaps to become well-balanced and content. The other featured that awkward, plump child of long ago, who as a well-padded grandmother achieved success in what is, in effect, a competitive team sport. Along the way, the two of them learned patience, tolerance and how to laugh at themselves. And the grandmother wrote a novel with a lot of dog training in it (Flame of Sevenwaters.)
Have you tackled an activity that takes you out of your comfort zone, and how did it change you? Who has a writer’s dog or cat, and what role does that animal play in your working life?
Juliet Marillier has written twenty-four novels for adults and young adults and two collections of short fiction. Her works of historical fantasy have been published around the world and have won numerous awards. Juliet’s most recent series was Warrior Bards, of which the third and final book, A Song of Flight, was published in 2021. Her collection of reimagined fairy tales, Mother Thorn and Other Tales of Courage and Kindness, had its trade release in 2022. Mother Thorn is illustrated by Kathleen Jennings and published by Serenity Press.
Juliet is currently working on a two-book fantasy series. The first book in this duology, The Amber Owl, will be published by New Dawn in February 2025.
When not writing, Juliet looks after a small crew of rescue dogs.
Couldn’t help noticing that the blog was titled “A Dog’s Tale” but then your photo had the tail cut off.
:) That’s what comes of deciding to use a home-grown photo rather than the beautiful studio portrait I have of my boy.
I have an outside dog, but occasionally he slips inside. Invariably he lets me know what he thinks of my writing by urinating on any stray copies he finds. I usually agree with him and work harder on rewriting.
My dogs approve of everything I write, but they do remind me when I’ve spent too long sitting at the keyboard.
Juliet,
I love this story!! I lost my dog about 2 months ago. I still expect to see him on the floor lying next to my chair. He didn’t face the challenges that your Harry did, but he became my inspiration all the same. He was a kind, gentle soul, and a really good listener. I miss the old boy more than I can say. What I heard in your dog tale is a message about redefining yourself, stepping out of what’s comfortable, especially in service of another. It’s a message I need to hear today, so thank you.
Thank you for those wise words, Susan! I’m sorry to hear you lost your dear old boy. Our animals truly enrich our lives. And yes, this is indeed a story about stepping out of the comfort zone, not alone, but with a friend. I think Harry and I helped each other.
“Have you tackled an activity that takes you out of your comfort zone, and how did it change you?”
Good Gracious, yes: Writing! And reading. When it comes to fiction, I often still feel like the awkward outsider, even in conversations right here on WU. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always read. But from college to my forties, I’d somehow fallen into a pattern that rarely included fiction. When our wise mentors toss around the names and works from the pantheon of the fiction elite, I’ve almost never read them. Of course, this is a condition that can be remedied, and I’ve broadened my horizons significantly since I first started lurking here – including by reading your work, Juliet, much to my delight.
Reading fiction widely and writing have changed me immeasurably. Trying to describe it would be more worthy of an essay of my own. But if I had to summarize, I’d say it’s opened me to feel more deeply, to decide what’s really important in this limited time I have on earth, rather than letting the days sweep by, awash in meaningless activity.
As for my dogs, well, suffice to say I wouldn’t be writing this comment, wouldn’t be writing at all, wouldn’t have made my way to the self-discovery I just described, without them. The love and companionship and joy, and even the loss and sorrow, that my dogs have brought to my life have been a great catalyst. I’m a better human because of them. Perhaps that’s a topic worthy of another essay.
Vaughn, I’m right there with you about feeling like an awkward outsider, especially here on WU where everyone is so knowledgeable. But I bet we’re not the only ones!
You’re not!! I’m relieved to know that I’m not, either!!
Lovely comment, Vaughn! Even I sometimes feel like an outsider on Writer Unboxed, when others post erudite comments about the writer’s craft while I write about my dog … One of the great things about this community is that everyone is welcomed and valued, and we celebrate the variety of backgrounds and contributions.
As the “Mom” of rescued pets I completely understand. Our most difficult rescue has been a long haired chihuahua who turned up on our back patio a little over six years ago. He had obviously been badly treated and was not a friendly fellow. As we waited for a response to our ads for “Found Dog” we struggled to get him to eat. In the end he would only accept sandwich meats hand fed by my husband, and then only grudgingly. I jokingly began calling him Hannibal after the character in the book “Silence of the Lambs”. He did not like our other dogs or cats and I was certain his stay with us would be short lived. Over time he adjusted to the fur baby’s, my grandchildren who came regularly, and has become my companion. Love, patience, and understanding has helped him become part of our rambunctious family. At this moment he is in his favorite spot, laying alongside me as I work on my third novel. He’s become quite the literary critic. Kudos to you and Harry for overcoming obstacles and supporting one another.
Great story, Elizabeth! Good work by you and your husband.
I just told my daughter that the problem with the chinchilla (Gizzy) is that she is not a good pet because she isn’t a good listener!
Your dog IS.
Comfort zone? I don’t remember what that is any more, as I take each terrifying step toward publishing the first novel. I thought the writing would be the hard part. I finished that Palm Sunday (back in March). I had this silly idea about doing my own cover – so I had to do the long-awaited mastering of the graphics software, along with re-reading four years of books and bookmarked articles on covers – and then applying those principles.
If you self-publish, you’re in charge of your book description (Advertising!), and have to say good things about your own book.
I tell you, this writing thing isn’t for sissies.
And I can’t stop now – I’m so close!
Thanks for sharing. No, I won’t go out and get a dog – I’m not able to walk properly, and don’t like being licked. But I have enjoyed your stories about yours.
Maybe a cat, Alicia? :) Good luck with the self-publishing – I hope your book goes wonderfully.
Juliet,
I’m a dog person, so your headline grabbed my attention and the cute photo of Harry and your telling of his story (and yours) kept it.
Currently, *life* is taking me out of my comfort zone. My two boys (dogs) are the perfect company to help me get through it, though. They’re both rescues, but they rescue me every day. They remind me when I’ve been at the desk too long (I have the scratches on my chair to prove it) and lead me to the great outdoors to throw a ball or a stick or just bask in the sun and get fleas. We’ve picked up a lot of fleas lately; it’s summer in Florida.
Like Vaughn, my fiction reading has been atrocious over the past few…uh…decades. I also feel inadequate to participate in writerly conversations on current novels, as I’ve lived on a diet of non-fiction for personal growth and continued education since college. Even now, I read more memoirs and non-fiction, but am able to fit in a Gaiman or such on occasion. I hope to rectify that and read more of the current authors soon (he says, while a book on beekeeping beckons from the nightstand).
But not E.L. James.
It occurs to me that maybe we should talk about non-fiction writing on WU more often. I’ve certainly been doing some great non-fiction reading recently – next in line is H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald.
Yes! Juliette, substitute border-collie for white mixed-breed, and you’ve got the story of Sadie the dog and Dana the plump grandma. Sadie had many issues and an obedience class was the start of the healing. We also followed with agility, which was so challenging and fun. Sadie is no longer living, and I have two friendly mini-aussies that are much easier to live with, but the bond created out of adversity is a gift not to be forgotten.
Border collies are stars of agility – though my friend at dog club has done wonders with a tiny poodle/papillon cross, who is a magnificent jumper and Harry’s best friend.
Juliet-
Adoption comes with challenges, as I well know. Canine and kid. Done both.
You portray your thirty-second decision to adopt Harry as chemistry, fated somehow, an inevitability arising from somewhere else, maybe Harry himself. “This one was different.”
I would say that it was you who were different. You were open. You were ready. Why doesn’t matter. You just were.
To me that suggests the the story of Harry is not only one of a writer getting out of her comfort zone, but a technique we can apply with our characters. They too make leaps. They too are one day ready to do something they couldn’t before.
Why? Perhaps there is more power in not knowing, in just being there. Open. Ready. What is that leap in the story underway? Can we work backwards to set it up as an impossible hurdle, like sport for you?
BTW, I love the community of Buddhist nuns. You can’t make this stuff up but as with Harry we can borrow the miracles and wonders of real life and turn them into fiction.
(I think you just sold a ton of Flame of Sevenwaters to a bunch of dog lovers here.)
Don, you have a gift for finding the kernel of writerly learning in a story and expressing it with elegance and economy!
Beautiful story, Juliet. I didn’t actually have time to do anything this morning except work but, like several WU readers, when I saw the title I was hooked. My husband and I have so far rescued two dogs, both corgis, the first with major health problems that resulted in having to blend all his food so he could lap it up, since his esophagus was almost completely closed. Despite that, and many other issues, he was our precious boy and a year after his passing we still mourn him. Our girl keeps us busy and fills part of the void and we wouldn’t be the same without her.
As for challenges and getting outside my comfort zone, I’m a non-fiction writer and wine business consultant. I think I do that every day when I accept a new client with issues I need to research before I can actually advise them! Or recently, when I accepted a request to do a webinar, which I’ve never done before but thought it would be good book promotion. Fortunately I discovered prior to my presentation that a webinar means I have to get out of my pajamas and put on clothes and makeup to appear presentable! I thought a webinar was audio only.
I have a second book coming out next month and I’m just as terrified about its launch as I was for the first. The inevitable questions arise – will it be well received? Does it make sense? Is my information accurate, relevant, topical, helpful? But if we don’t take these steps – adopt a dog, write a book, do a webinar – we never know the joy and sense of accomplishment that is possible when we really do what terrifies us.
So true, Deborah. I have to remind myself to be as brave as my protagonist would be when facing a challenge. If I’m not, then I am making a lie of my own storytelling.
We lived in Honolulu (LA West) for the better part of 20 years. Animal life was two-legged and drove loud noxious vehicles. Writing struggled, but somehow got done. Since January we’ve been living in Waikoloa on the Big Island. Animal life here is wild goats, donkeys, cattle, horses and birds of all sizes and colors. The writing is flowing.
Ray, that sounds a wonderful place to live and create. May the words continue to flow well.
Thanks for your good wishes. My point was that the more we connect to nature, the more we connect to our inner nature and our inner nature wants us to create. We are lucky to have a weekly writers meeting in Waimea. Nothing like it to charge the batteries and get more words put together.
Well, yet another reason to admire you. Thank you for your moving tale. My two cats keep me grounded, entertained, and always feeling loved.
Lovely story! I have a huge soft spot for dogs. I rescued both of my golden retrievers, Pete and Finn. Pete passed away last year, but they always accompanied me into my small office and draped themselves across whatever floor space they could find. Now Finn is the only one, and he knows exactly when I am heading to my office. He follows, plopping his considerable heft right down under my desk. I think he finds it very soothing, because he is often snoring away. :-)
My dogs know and love their routine, Patti. Though they do sometimes try to build more into that routine – an extra walk, an extra treat or two.
Juliet, a happy tale indeed. I am 100% a cat person and terrified of dogs but guess who is my most devoted partner? Yup, a dog. We too, had to rise above all our fears. After seven years together, we’re quite a bit alike.
Hi, Juliet.
You had me at “dog.”
I love Don’s take (and I knew he’d have something interesting to say given his adoption efforts), and have little meaningful to add, except that to me this is a story about wounds and trust.
Our wounds create fiercely guarded defense mechanisms that, curiously enough, have the potential to “ruin our life.” Only by trusting someone capable and willing to reach out and help can we overcome that trap.
This was one of the themes of my last novel: There is no freedom without trust. I think Harry’s a very lucky boy. He may have spent three weeks in the bush, but now he is really, truly free.
Great insight, David. I’ve increasingly found myself writing about seriously damaged people and their struggles to heal themselves and each other. I agree, being ready to trust is part of it (for both dogs and humans.) For humans, I think the first step is being able to respect and love yourself, which has to happen before you can recognise the worth of others.
Your book sounds good!
I am also a 100% cat person but I love all animals. I enjoyed your beautiful Dog’s tale and your persistence to make it work with Harry. Thank you both for an inspiring message.
Thank you, Julaina!
I am always touched by stories like yours, Juliet. Coincidentally, I have a cat named Harry, that chose my husband as his human companion. Harry is a black cat with respiratory issues, so chances were that nobody would adopt him. When we went to the rescue place to see about a cat, Harry made the decision for us. He is the most loving cat and has helped me deal with my grief after my husband died. Harry likes to be hugged.
While I am a bit more of a cat person, I also have an amazing dog, Poppy. Another animal that was first my husband’s and now mine.
Animals do bring so much enrichment to our lives, and I am so grateful for all of mine – one horse, one goat, one sheep, one dog and four cats. Guess who rules.
Good for you adopting Harry – it is so weird that black cats are hard to place with adoptive families, but that seems to be so everywhere. At challenging times, the unconditional love of our animals is so precious.
Ah, Juliet. What a beautiful story and so perfect for me to read this rather tumultuous week.
Your little Harry has always been an inspiration to me and my young fellow who has many of the same issues. Now that he is a ‘single’ dog – we will spend even more time on the fun (for fun read obedience, because in essence that’s what it is – but joyous in the process) because Harry (and yourself) have shown us what’s possible with dedication.
Love to Harry and a high paw for achievement…
Love to you and yours, Prue. There is a Jack Russell who sometimes comes to our class and is so, so good – he and his lady are a joy to watch. In time that will be you and your little chap, I’m certain. As for Harry, he still isn’t 100% reliable outside the security of the training/trialling environment – the traumatic past is not so easily banished. But he’s dramatically improved.
I’ve always said there’s nothing like a dog. I don’t dislike other animals, although I’m allergic to cats. Petting my dog – a miniature schnauzer with a wolf mentality – always eases my troubled mind and ultimately helps me stay focused on my writing. A few years ago, here in the U.S., a woman devised a unique program to help children with dyslexia and other learning problems: she had them read in front of a dog. Dogs, of course, generally look like they’re intrigued by what you’re saying and at least pretend to understand. But they’re also non-judgmental, so reading to the dogs puts the children at ease and gets them comfortable with reading aloud.
I’ve read about that program, Alejandro, and seen the pictures of children reading to dogs, I think in shelters ie they were rescued dogs waiting for homes. It seemed to me a wonderful idea, and both readers and listeners appeared to be enjoying the experience.
I’m so impressed that you fostered pups, Juliet — my own Slobbering Beast would have been a much different animal if his last foster home hadn’t put so much work into him. I’ve done agility courses (and been soundly whipped by the #$#$# aussies and border collies) and I can attest that it is a very physical and challenging sport. Kudos on your title! And congrats on putting the time in to help Harry become his best canine self.
Thank you, Liz!
I have a dog with a similar experience. He was abused by other dogs when he was a small puppy and when w he’s adopted him at age 8 months he portrayed all of the similar dog aggressive behaviors. The road has been long and we are continuing to train and work on his behaviors, his fear and learning to trust again.
Well done you! You do have to be extremely patient and not expect quick results. Sounds as if you understand what you’ve taken on. :)
I love this article!
We support a couple of rescue orgs and we hear so many heartbreaking stories. It’s so nice to hear a happy ending and we delight in the way rescued dogs have enriched so many lives (and vice versa.) It’s wonderful how dogs “lead” us away from our comfort zones. :-)
Harry reminds me of my first dog, Peaches, a sweet Bichon, and he also reminds me of my current dog, Caeli, a Maltese.
This is just beautiful, Juliet. Many congratulations to you and to Harry! Huge achievements.
Most of the animals in our family have been rescue animals in one way or another – including Scarlett the Bearded Dragon (who was close to death when she came to me and has been dodging the Reaper ever since) and our lovely Honey-dog, who was so shy and scared when we first took her in. They do hold an extra special place in your heart when you know how things must have been before.
What a beautiful story! Thanks for that.
That little cuttie on the cover of the post grab my attention:)