Bad Animals

Money-hungry Ely

Confession: I have bad animals. And it’s all my fault.

I tolerate bad behavior.

Ask anyone who knows me: I have a problem saying ‘no,’ to just about anything or anyone.

Including animals.

There is Ely, a dog of indeterminate lineage, who jumps on my couch. To be expected. After all, Annie jumps on the couch, as do Ripley and Chaco.

But Ely? He jumps on the couch with the sole intention of eating it.

No pictorial evidence of that particular endeavor, but I do offer the following of another, just as messy, endeavor:

As devoted as Ely is to eating couches, toys, and toilet paper, he prefers eating my money. Literally.

He has destroyed my checkbook — replaceable. My American Express — also replaceable. A handful of $1 bills — no biggie. Three $20 bills — that one hurt. And, by far the worst, a $50 bill.

After the $50 episode, I didn’t feed him for a week. Figured the money should sustain him.

Yeah. Ely’s not a good dog.

In fact, I’d go so far as to say he’s a bad dog.

He doesn’t seem to care though. He’s happy. He spends his days barking at bicycles, horses, and the FedEx truck.

And maybe sometimes being happy is all that counts.