Mugzy
The real life Mugzy is not in any way to be confused with Muggs, the “irascible” Airedale from literature. Chapter 7, in James Thurber’s, My Life And Hard Times, was titled, “The Dog That Bit People.” 1933, must have been a much less litigious time as “Mother used to send a box of candy every Christmas to the people the Airedale bit. The list finally contained forty or more names.” In his circle, the very present Mugzy is known for making life a bit better for those lucky enough to have a path that intersects with his.
You cannot help but smile when you meet Mugzy. He has an unusual personality and conformation that draws people to him. It is a real challenge for Z, one of his humans, to relate Mugzy’s story and explain his configuration to so many curious people. Magzy’s appearance is that of a chimeric creature portaled from the pages of folklore. When his DNA was researched the results came back even more fantastical- a totally implausible Great Pyrenees and Chihuahua cross. Fore and aft, Mugzy presents as a Sharpei. He has the broad, wrinkled face, ears and curled up tail of the Sharpei. There is no blue or black on his tongue to ward off evil spirits. His serious looking, furled brow conceals a deep sense of humor and a joie de vive of a breed originating in France. Z points out his short legs with the out turned front paws, sported by Basset Hounds. Also, like a Basset, his 58 pound body is long and stout. To this genetic recipe, add a brindle coat and all that can be said is that the contest to determine Mugzy’s origin is still open.
Mugzy, one of six siblings, was rescued at the age of 5 ½ weeks from underneath a house. None of the other puppies looked remotely related to Mugzy. Animal Control found twenty dogs on the property. At that point in time, a shelter volunteer, who knew Z and her husband had just lost their dog and were thinking of getting another, mentioned the rescued dogs. They went to look at the puppies and tiny Mugzy saw Z’s husband from a distance. He immediately ran up to him and made his claim. There was no doubt, no looking back, Mugzy sold himself on the spot and off to his new home he went. Right out of the blocks, as a tiny puppy, Mugzy showed his ability to “thin slice,” to make accurate judgements , on the spot, about people and situations. (1). Z says Mugzy is more attached to her husband than to her,
Mugzy is not your Golden Retriever type of dog who will run off with anyone who will scratch him behind the ears. Mugzy has no history of biting people but he will grumble if a stranger reaches for him. It reminds people to have better manners. There is no problem once he has a relationship with someone. There was one exception. Z and her husband hold regular poker games, the first and third Sundays of every month. One of their regular guests, “a very nice man,” rides a bicycle to the games. Mugzy could not abide this one person and would growl and lunge at him. He had to be restrained and kept away from this person. Mugzy was banished from polite society on the days of the poker game. This man had never offended him in any way. The guest asked what he could do to help change Mugzy’s opinion of him. In fact, Mugzy had not had any known bad experience with any human since his adoption.
He did have one bad experience with dogs, he was attacked by a Pit Bull and a German Shepherd. As it was, there was a German Shepherd behind a fence on one of Z’s and Mugzy’s regular walking routes. Mugzy was very reactive to this dog, even if they passed on the far side of the street. This Shepherd, with his happily wagging tail, showed every sign of wanting to make friends but Mugzy would have none of it. So it went for some time. Then, one day, as Z and Mugzy were passing by the Shepherd’s yard, the dog’s owner stepped out of the house and called to Z. It was the “very nice man” from the poker game. Now, after a bit of remedial work, Mugzy has a new challenge as he passes by the Shepherd’s yard. He insists on “guiding” Z up to the door of the house and the two dogs enjoy getting treats together. Mugzy is also completely comfortable with the Shepherd’s person.The Shepherd’s owner has not been by Mugzy’s place to play poker recently, but when he does, there is no doubt that Mugzy will welcome him, despite his strong eau de cologne de Shepherd.
Mugzy has had oly good experiences with cats. There is a picture of Mugzy with kittens crawling all over him from his younger days. On walks he will sit while Z kneels and encourages cats to approach. Mugzy waits patiently as one cat comes up and performs a “stand for examination”- tip to tail. There are a couple others that are cautiously learning to approach. Occasionally, some nights, a familiar cat pops over the fence around Mugzy’s yard and the two hang out together.
Mugzy, as mentioned, is not a retriever but he can fetch with the best of them. Every night he repeatedly and unerringly fetches a ball in his yard, in the dark. If you spot him walking down the street, there is a good chance he will have a ball in his mouth. And there is a good probability he just found that ball. In the short time Z waited for me to arrive at the park to interview Mugzy, he had already found two balls. His collection is said to be vast, a dog’s equivalent to the hoard of a small dragon. Z has given him his head on a number of occasions and many a time he has led her over great distances and occasionally into an overgrown thicket to locate an errant tennis ball. He is remarkably agile and swift on those four short legs under his long, solid body. When he has accepted you, Mugzy will bring one of his round treasures up to you, drop it, and allow you to toss it for him.
Retrievers, with all their watery genetic inclinations do not have a leg up on Mugzy as a swimmer. Mugzy loves the water. He cruises at at a speed of several knots, his long, stout form repudiating the laws of physics, improbably propelled by his short legs. He has been known to retrieve an object under water, to submerge, swim up and take a stick from below. Mugzy perfected his version of freestyle by paddling around in the bathtub as a tiny puppy.
Z and Mugzy enjoy walking in parks and it was in a park they would come across a man tossing seed for the birds. One day, Mugzy suddenly strained on his leash and dragged Z to the man’s car. Without pause, an agile bound launched Mugzy into the startled man’s car. Using the same radar with which he finds balls and had “thin sliced” to choose his family, Mugzy claimed Birdman as a new friend. Over time, Mugzy, Z and Birdman became closer. Birdman was disabled, the result of a stroke. He lived in a shelter but spent days in his car in the park. When Birdman was not feeling well, Z helped feed his birds. Looming over Birdman was the dread he would soon be turned out of the shelter. Once or twice a week, Z and Mugsy hung out with Birdman.
Tinman was another of Mugzy’s pals. Tinman was not homeless but is an enigma. He started out cleaning the trash in the park. He evolved his efforts to collect empty bottles and cans and cash them in. He then uses the proceeds to help others. Z collects all the recyclable items from the bi monthly poker games and delivers them to Tinman. Sometimes, he is not to be found at the designated tree but Z leaves her gatherings. Tinman, like many people that Z and Mugzy met, had no predictable schedule, sometimes people would disappear and then resurface days, weeks or months later. Or they might not be seen again.
A third friend of Mugzy holds down a job but has been forced to live out of his car. He had seen Mugzy interact with other people and asked Z if he could meet him. Mugzy went straight up to the man, put his paws on the guy and began nuzzling him. Mugzy also has befriended a number of nomadic women who spend their days in a park.At dusk they disperse in their cars to elsewhere. Varying in number from three to five cars on average, the park provides a restroom, water and places to cook food. The women, and sometimes men, help each other by sharing information on possible jobs, the labyrinths of government workings and offering encouragement. Z often brings food to Mugzy’s friends, especially if there were leftovers from poker night. Mugzy has brought some incredibly nice people into her life, says Z. His affection has brought a little happiness and humor into many peoples’ lives who get no respite in this world. So Mugzy and Z continue on their rounds, finding new people to befriend. And, of course, Mugzy continues to add to his ball collection.
It turns out that Birdman recently found a permanent home. It is safe and his special needs are attended to. Mugzy and Z visit him periodically and continue to enjoy his company. Z and Mugzy regularly return to the park and can be seen continuing Birdman’s regimen of feeding the birds. And what does Mugzy do, after spending a day making the world a better place? Mugzy’s ‘thin slicing’ has done very well for himself as well as others. After his nightly routine of retrieving a ball in the dark, he curls up on the couch with Z’s husband. Every evening they can be found together, a snoring “duet.”