tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3730801.post3472265173935943643..comments2023-12-31T17:47:27.217-08:00Comments on Taj MuttHall Dog Diary: Marley and Not MeElfhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01827436807468320435noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3730801.post-27772167462551131362009-01-12T13:25:00.000-08:002009-01-12T13:25:00.000-08:00That's not to say that I wouldn't WRITE about dogs...That's not to say that I wouldn't WRITE about dogs dying. In some ways, though, as a writer, it seems like such an easy emotional hook--it's a hard heart indeed that won't weep when a writer with any talent talks about a dog's passing. But, you're right--the dog's short lifespan plays a tremendous role in our relationship with them, and especially so for performance dogs. Are they still young enough and healthy enough to be doing the sport? To be doing it at the top levels? Should we be doing it as much? Do we need to do additional body work or dietary supplements or what because they're getting older? How long will they last? Will cancer get 'em? (So many of them... sigh...)<BR/><BR/>Still--and especially--because it's in the back of my mind, or the front, so often, I don't want to read or experience in detail someone else's dog dying!Elfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01827436807468320435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3730801.post-38036614779815087352009-01-12T10:29:00.000-08:002009-01-12T10:29:00.000-08:00Hey ELF! I was interested to read about your frie...Hey ELF! I was interested to read about your friends' agility-related screenplay and your thoughts on Marley and Me. I'm working on a novel set in the agility world, so it's interesting to me to learn of others who are interested in similar things. Addressing dog death in dog fiction and movies is a challenge. Can't fully avoid it, I think, because that's like ignoring the elephant in the room of our intense relationships with our short-lived beloveds. But that's not at all what our relationships with them are all about either. Interesting....wishy the writerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09283782839841638766noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3730801.post-61002727311933299252008-12-29T17:30:00.000-08:002008-12-29T17:30:00.000-08:00I remember the first time I saw My Dog Skip - when...I remember the first time I saw My Dog Skip - when the little boy hit Skip I busted out crying like a lunatic. Just can't watch that one again. <BR/><BR/>But I have to say I did enjoy Eight Below. I cried a little, but I felt it a generally happy ending.<BR/><BR/>Why, I don't know. But Good Dog is one of my favorites, a dog from outer space, no less. <BR/><BR/>But a good story about a boy's (imagine, girl) love for a dog and back, I find irresistible :)Johann The Doghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11676712437788270947noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3730801.post-31989138701762525972008-12-29T11:49:00.000-08:002008-12-29T11:49:00.000-08:00An agility friend's spouse took a screenwriting cl...An agility friend's spouse took a screenwriting class and his screenplay starred agility dogs! However, he doesn't really know that much about dog agility, so it wasn't particularly realistic, but it was fun to know that he thought it was interesting enough to concoct a story from.Elfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01827436807468320435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3730801.post-86052729668413751442008-12-29T11:22:00.000-08:002008-12-29T11:22:00.000-08:00Not only do I not enjoy watching movies where dogs...Not only do I not enjoy watching movies where dogs suffer and/or die, I also don't enjoy watching "cute" movies where people are inept at raising and training their dogs and so the dog is characterized as a "troublemaker" or even "bad".<BR/>When are they going to make a dog movie for us dog trainer tpes?Cedarfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02822477553207119803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3730801.post-36401957762322879482008-12-25T18:04:00.000-08:002008-12-25T18:04:00.000-08:00Not melancholy...just real.Not melancholy...just real.Dawnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00824027366993286152noreply@blogger.com