Bela's genetic makeup is a mystery. A few breeds are suspected, the ones that seem most obvious. Lab. Beagle. Coonhound (Basically, any type of hound).
Daily, people ask what she 'is'. I can't explain the need to know a dog's breed, but I often partake in the game as well. I don't think it's quite the 'How are you?' question [something people habitually ask that they don't actually care to know] for dogs; it seems like those that ask are genuinely intrigued. Answering with "I don't know" only fuels the quest for the truth. Body parts are broken down, hair color commented on, fur texture investigated.
Many have remarked that she is cervine in likeness. I've heard reference to 'Santa's Little Helper' from The Simpsons. (That scrawny dog was but a hungry and humbled fawn, in my opinion.) Her color, body shape and most especially her little rump give way to this train of thought.
It's perfect that she is so , as I have always had a thing for deer. I grew up in the country, where our backyard was the woods - and they were chock-full of them.
We didn't hunt, though neighboring countryfolk did. Oh!, did our family get up in arms when we'd hear shots being fired, for no one was allowed to hunt on our property without permission. I wanted to believe the deer were safe in our woods, where they could birth babies and grow large and prosper. But the men with their shotguns took my dreams of being a real life Snow White away from me.
I spoke of my future as a deer farm owner. I had no idea what this entailed, but I wanted whole bunch of deer, under my care, my protection. I wanted to tend to their needs. But let's be honest - I wanted them to love me back. I wanted a canine connection with a family of fawn.
Both deer and dogs are almost ubiquitous so...why couldn't they cross-breed? (For the record, I googled 'Can a dog breed with a deer?'; and the resounding response is no. But these are people talking, let's bear in mind. Not deer; and not dogs. I'm just saying.
Now, I don't know if she could possibly be a hybrid, but from wherever she came, she is the product of love. Okay -- maybe lust. Or, well...maybe needs meeting needs underneath the moon.
I was outside of a hotel one night, walking her. We were on the outskirts of a town and the property was sitting very near a wooded area. It was very dark out there, but I noticed Bela react to something. Her body went rigid and she stared into the abyss, wanting to go to something. It took a few moments for my eyes to adjust and see what she saw. And there they were. A whole pack of deer! I counted 13, as they bounded off. Bela was shaking with desire to go to them/run after them/with them/for them/around them. I would be lying if I didn't admit that I considered letting her go, letting her be the deer she was born to be. Certain I'd never see her again, I was also certain she would adore her newfound existence. It would likely mirror that of her dreams.
I kept her on the leash. I walked her back inside the HOTEL, let her crawl into the BED and kissed her on the head. She may be reminiscent of a roe, and she may long their life to know -- but...no matter how deer-like she may be, she is a dog, at the end of the day. A DOMESTICATED dog.
I have a fairly nonexistent relationship with my younger brother. Time and substance abuse have put a wall between us. In an odd turn of things, a couple of years ago, we were in the same place, at the same time. He was not facing, nor speaking to me - but I was in the room - when someone passed around the pointless-and-tortuous 'What-would-you-do-if-you-had-a-million-dollars' question. My ears strained to catch his response, and then hurt, along with my heart, when I heard: "Well, first...I'd buy Kelly's deer farm for her."
I likely won't buy one; and he likely won't bestow one upon me. But just knowing my little brother kept that dream alive for me is enough.
My deer farm isn't needed now, anyway. I have a beautiful doe-like dog. My tamed -- but wild -- beast.
