by Jacob Robertson

Created on: June 21, 2008   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

The life of my Cocker Spaniel has been as complicated as his name. I'll tell you this, Podo Joe Cocker Spaniel MD has gotten by with more than a little help from his friends.

Podo has endured five years of struggle and strife as a companion in my life and has endured as a shining example of all that is right with this world.

To testify to the resilience of the breed and the joy that he fosters in everyone he's met I'm going to touch of scary moments, difficult times, and Podo's current preoccupations.

You see, Podo is a dog of the world more than most wee beasties. When teaching abroad in 2003 I requested a dog from a South Korean pet hospital after witnessing a pair of beautiful light brown Spaniels on my daily commute. They seemed so calm and endearing and I was experiencing the harsh loneliness of travel mixed with culture shock. I was without companion so taking on a pet seemed like a good thing to do.

I told the people working at the pet hospital the name of the breed and they supplied the little doggy I've grown so accustomed to but instead of a glowing brown mane he was more black with a white spot on his chest but despite this once in my arms I couldn't let go.

Korea wasn't prepared for what happened next.

I had to potty train a new puppy in a single apartment with a heated floor. I used the kennel method and had remarkable luck with the new pup. I'm rather embarrassed by the resulting mess but he seemed to take to going outside fairly well. In the process of walking him constantly down to neighborhood park I had one of these moments that will remain in my head as horrible tragedy diverted.

Podo had intestinal parasites and pooped out moving excrement. I could have died and had to run to the aid of my coworkers who late at night were kind enough to help me find a vet. The vet reassured me that Podo would live. I was so relieved that I cried openly in the waiting room and with good reason. Podo has always been special and without him I don't know if I would be doing as well as I am.

So over the course of five years since his first breath Podo started in Korea and returned there for another six months in the later half of 2006. Along the way he's lived with rodents of unusual size in an infested trailer in North Carolina as well during my attempt to be an Art teacher in a public school. We made it out of there unscathed but traumatized. That's about the time when Podo received his medical degree. He's the first canine medical doctor and is respected in his field of human companionship.

He's an apartment dweller too, my Podo, and spends his days now that we've both reached early middle age out here at the family estate in Iowa chasing toys, barking at squirrels, and generally being a couple of good boys.

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