Hey Mom,

Your Big Dawg Khan here. Met a rather fetching Dalmation-Corgi mix, Pickle, in Spencerville. We started off on the wrong paw – guess it was her pickle-like name – but slowly a friendship sparked during our relentless games of tug-of-war (despite my initial territorial grumbles). Things took a chilly yet heartwarming turn during the Great Freeze; defeated the cold for a game outside! Let’s just say, losing never felt that victorious. Will bark more details later!

Tails wagging,
Khan

Listen to the story here

It is commonly said that ‘a dog is a man’s best friend’, and this belief was proven correct with the story of Khan and his owner, who incidentally was me. My dear Khan, the paws to my feet, the wagging tail to my spirit.

One sunny day in Spencerville, while Khan and I were having one of our daily conversations at Bark and Bites – a most charming eatery that serves an excellent blend of chew bones and hot coffee for the two of us – we met the most interesting half-Dalmatian, half-Corgi mix named Pickle. If there was a Spencerville beauty pageant, Pickle would surely have a crowning chance.

Do understand that Khan and Pickle’s relationship didn’t exactly get off to a smooth beginning. Khan fundamentally disliked pickles, and I somehow suspect he felt mingling with a dog named Pickle was a betrayal of his culinary principles.

But as the quirkiness of the universe demands, two entities with opposing sides, like a paradoxical subplot, often find themselves irresistibly drawn to each other. And Khan, my dear Khan, with his redemptive graces and a resilience that could only be compared to the most stubborn squeaky toy, was no different.

As the Spencerville days went by, Khan would engage Pickle in his favourite game of tug-of-war. I would often sit and watch the endearing spectacle, sipping my coffee at Pup-Peroni – another culinary masterpiece of a café. It was impossible not to notice the sparkle in Khan’s enchanting blue eyes every time Pickle managed to pull the rope away.

One might think it was due to the unwavering warrior spirit within him; an undying desire to win the battle of the rope. But I knew better. It was the spark of friendship that slowly turned into an unspoken love story, backed by the idyllic landscape of Collie Canyon or the lively hustle and bustle of The Fetching Feline Pet Emporium.

And then there was the day of the Great Freeze, a term coined by the surprisingly articulate township of Spencerville. As the first fluttering snowflakes fell from the gray sky, I remember Khan looking utterly dismayed.

But believe it or not, Pickle found her way to our front door, proudly strutting her canine bravado, and challenged Khan to step out in the snow for a game of tug-of-war. And to my utter surprise, Khan, who despised the cold, joined her. I still remember their joyous howls cut through winter’s icy silence, creating a new facet of their quaint romantic comedy.

And in the heart of icy Spencerville, love had found its way. That winter, Khan found something more comforting than the heat of the hearth, in the appreciating eyes of a dog named Pickle.

You should have seen his face the first time Pickle won a game. It was like losing to his best friend was merely just another triumphant victory. And in this town that’s supposedly made for pets, for all the yelps and howls, the paws and purrs, there was no greater tale than that of Khan and Pickle. Comedically pitted together by fate and a shared love of a good tug-of-war. The cheeseburgers weren’t half bad either.

The End.

Share This Story: