By Elizabeth Headley
Sprucy was the name given to a one-month old, light brown nugget of a puppy. He arrived shivering in the cold but still wagging his little tail profusely. He enjoyed the comforting touch of caring hands as he was laid in the palms of his new owner. His saucer brown eyes looked up at her face taking in every smile and endearing look ensuring that he could trust this new human. He did. He soon relaxed in her arms and drifted off to sleep.
It is now one year later and Sprucy has developed an intriguing personality of his own. His most outstanding quality without a doubt, is his tender affection. When his owner walks toward him, he immediately lays down, puts his head out flat on whatever surface he is on, nestles his head between her feet and looks up into her eyes indicating what he desires. When she stoops down and gently rubs his head he turns over on his back and “smiles.” I am sincerely convinced that the showing of those pearly white, canine teeth is a smile of endearment. He then places his head on her feet like it’s his pillow. Sprucy wishes she can stay in that position for the rest of the day, or maybe even his entire life. Coupled with his affectionate nature is a high level of alertness. He is very alert to sounds and unfamiliar scents even when they are yards away and notifies his owner with deep growls and ear-piercing barks despite the time of the day or night.
Sprucy’s uniqueness even extends to his preferred diet. When given food that was manufactured for dogs, he sniffs at it with disgust, looks at his master and walks away. On the other hand, when given fried chicken strips tossed in freshly cooked rice, he gobbles that down without an upward glance until his bowl is sparkling clean. His acute sensitivity to his palate as well as his likes and dislikes is so human-like it’s intriguing. Sprucy also has an internal body clock that he works with that informs him of when he will eat and not eat. At 5:30 each morning he expects his first meal of the day. If he does not receive it then, his barking can be heard a mile away. He also expects his last meal of the day at 5:30 pm. He is so time sensitive when it comes to his meals because German Shepard dogs eat meals based on a specific schedule. They would bark around the time they expect to receive their food until they receive it.
These qualities and traits of Sprucy makes him unique and certainly a special part of the family. His name Sprucy matches well with who he is and the effect he has on others. To “spruce things up” means to make things better, neater or more appealing to the eyes and that is the effect Sprucy has on people. He not only is a physically good-looking dog but his affection, playfulness and desire to protect surely makes the lives of those in his presence better. Hence the reason the name Sprucy is so fitting. It perfectly describes who he is and what he does to the lives of others.
