I am a dog lover. I've lived with a wide variety of dogs all my life, from a Toy Poodle named Peppy to a monstrous lab/Portuguese Water Dog mix named Zoe. Unlike E. B. White, most of my dogs have been female and were chosen by me. I still learned from the dogs in my life and I didn't pick males because I was told they were more aggressive. Did this belief affect my understanding of the sexes later in life, I don't know. I never really thought about it until reading White's "Dog Training" essay. Perhaps someone should do a study of society's perception of sexes based on the type of dog they own.

And unlike White, I never even met a stray dog, let alone bring one home with me. A few of my dogs liked to stray from home a lot, usually following me around town, like joining me in the hallways of my junior high school. I had a beagle mix who used to love to sneak out the back door of our house. I swear she only needed 2 inches and she'd be gone. The only way to get her back was to take my car for a spin around the neighborhood. When she heard the sound of my car's engine, she'd lope up beside the car, I'd open my door and she'd hop across my lap, landing firmly in the passenger seat. She loved to go for car rides. Of course, after watching hours of "The Dog Whisperer" and reading Jon Katz and John Grogan, I understand I just trained the dog to run out the door so she could get a car ride! I was always much better trained than my dogs.

I especially enjoyed reading White's commentary on housebreaking dogs in this essay. I'm sure my mother would have loved it if I'd left my dogs outside all the time, instead of letting them loll about the house leaving reminders of their presence for her to pick up. My mother did a lot of dog care while my brothers and I were growing up. My father believed dogs were an intricate part of family life. He didn't change diapers either. So my childhood memories of dogs are much fonder than those of raising puppies as an adult. I roared when I read in "Dog Training" about Mr. Duncan of "Dog Training Made Easy" fame impressing upon readers the importance of giving dogs space when "they are doing something" because puppies are naturally modest. Hmmm, I never met a modest puppy. But I agree with White's assessment of morning dog walkers trying to ensure their puppy's morning duty fit into the owner's office schedule. Can you imagine using the excuse" My puppy wouldn't go!" for being late to work when, "My dog ate my homework." never worked in school?

White was very observant of the animals on his small farm. Were there any dogs in any of his childrens' books? Perhaps a small dachshund or a collie like the one that would escort White home from school as a child. Reading these essays along with rereading "Stuart Little" and "Charlotte's Web" may be an interesting lesson. I always like reading around a book I enjoy, finding out more about a time, subject or person I've read about. Has anyone reread White's children's books as a result of this online book group?

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