October 4, 2023
We've read a lot of stories and watched movies about men's best friends becoming lonely when their fur parents pass away. It seems like we have one. My father's fur son named Duterts or Duterte seems to be waiting for him to come back home each day. He was, by the way, named after our former president, Mr. Duterte, because my father was a fan of him.
My father passed away on the 22nd of September, and ever since that day, this dog has never been as enthusiastic as before. He seemed to be sad, lonely, and missing someone. Seeing him in that state makes me sad too. Although my father has an iron fist, he's a man with a big heart for animals and nature.
When I got home, I called this dog, and he looked at me. Although we hadn't seen each other for years, he still seemed familiar to me. I remembered this was the dog my father brought with him when they sent me to the airport back when I went to Manila in 2017. He was still a baby back then. Now he's a grown-up puppy.
I am uncertain if he knows that my father died, but they said they let him see his body inside the cold casket. I wonder if dogs can understand the situation. I wonder if he recognized him since my father's long beard was cut. It was his identity.
Just look at his eyes. They look sad and seem to be missing someone. He seems to be waiting for my father to come back home. He would lie on the floor in front of our door and seem to be waiting for him. He would bark when hearing a familiar voice. But he would look disappointed once he saw that someone wasn't the one he was waiting for.
Just this morning, I saw him sleeping on the floor near our door. His heartbeat doesn't seem to be normal. It was pacing fast. I asked my sister if it was his normal breathing, and she said it wasn't. She was surprised as well. We can't bear to lose another family member again. At least not this time. I just hope he will realize that his boss isn't here anymore and that he can move on soon.
My father was a dog lover. Aside from Duterts, we also have other breeds of dogs.
This is Louie, the dog in the middle, with his siblings. I don't know how we got these dogs. My father or siblings probably adopted their furmom.
Meanwhile, they call this dog Beatrix. She's my sister-in-law's dog. But when she delivered my niece, my father became the guardian of this dog. She looks scary and might be harmful. Probably the reason why she's caged. I, myself, am afraid of going near her too.
Aside from dogs, other animals that we pet at home include a parrot, some ducks, roosters, and cats. We had rabbits, pigs, an eagle, and goats before. The rabbits died, meanwhile, the eagle was sold because it was illegal to pet it. The pigs and goats were probably butchered or sold. As mentioned in one of my posts before, our house is like a little farm. It really is for me.
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Meanwhile, our ducks are free in our backyard. The pond beside our house became their resting spot. Some hatched new feathered babies. Unfortunately, some adult ducks were roasted and eaten by retired soldiers who visited my father's last wake. It was, I guess, their request.
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He's someone who seems to want to be surrounded by life. So I don't understand why he gave up his own when we wanted him to continue. Life is unfair sometimes. You would fight for others, but they would give up, so you don't need to suffer anymore. My father was buried in his permanent home last Monday, but we still can't move on from it. Again, it will take time to heal this painful wound.
(All photos are mine)
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