[QUOTE=C Elegans]...Slightly tired, the girl carefully lifted the lid to expose some long, hairy spider legs. The boy, who had been leaning towards the girl, turned totally white, threw himself backwards in the seat and looked like he was going to puke. He didn't say a word for the rest of the journey.
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I must say...since the earliest age, I lacked the phobias possessed by many in regards to certain animals. My father told me the story of how he came across an immature alligator on the road when he was a lad (he grew up in central Florida). He managed to persuade his grandmother to let him keep it in a tub in the house...that is, until it grew to be about 3 feet long. Alas, his grandmother, possessing wisdom beyond my father at that time, told him out it goes! This story, much to my mother's consternation later, fired up my imagination. She never liked the snakes, spiders, and lizards I would bring home.
As a kid, most of my friends wanted a dog. Me, I wanted an alligator.
@Magrus: That wolf-dog was my best friend. His mother was a cat-eating certified pure wolf (the owner told me how this female wolf had eaten four of her cats in a row
), and his father was an oversized white german shepherd named Zak. Zak was a big, friendly pushover, and my wolf-dog took after his father in this regard. I was a little concerned that Zabiel (that was the name I gave my wolf-dog) would take after his mother in his culinary preferences, but was relieved to discover that he didn't. This was rare, though: most of her pups grew up just like mommy. I've heard that certain breeds of dogs, like malamutes and huskies, have a tendency to eat cats...and that many wolf-dogs do the same.
Through keeping Zabiel, I learned many things. I undertook studying wolves and canines in general. From a puppy he engaged in some unique behaviors, such as "mouthing", that domesticated dogs sometimes exhibit (they have the instinct), though is rarely seen amongst them. Amongst wolves from the northern regions, however, it is normal behavior and how a juvenile wolf asks an older wolf in the pack for food. So basically, Zabiel would bite my hand very gently now and then during the course of a day...that was his way of begging for food. This was no big deal when he was a fat little puppy (except for those needle milk teeth), but as he started to grow into the oversized shaggy oaf he would eventually become, it became a concern. I consulted with a group of people who dedicated themselves to keeping pure wolves and wolf-dogs, and received some advice on how to deal with that, and how to read "wolf-speak". The neat thing about this is, it isn't just a body language limited to wolves, it's a body language that all dogs use instinctually. With a few exceptions, it is possible to tell what a canine is feeling and experiencing at any time by looking at their posture, position of the tail and ears, and the kind of whine or bark they are using. If a dog shows their teeth, it isn't always a sign of aggression or a warning. On the contrary, a wolf will drop down and crawl on their belly, showing their teeth with their ears pressed back, as a submission gesture. Zabiel would do this with me when he pulled a stunt (and boy, would he pull some stunts) and saw that I was upset with him. I have seen ordinary dogs do this as well.
I cured Zabiel of his mouthing, which was good since this dog had extremely powerful jaws and ate bones like cookies (he didn't chew on bones, he *ate* them on the spot
). For comparison, in the realm of canines, wolves are #2 on the bite-power list. Rottweilers and German Shepherds are a very close #3. The American pit bull terrier, of course, is #1. They put out more psi with their jaws than a great white shark does.
If you ever decide to make the committment to keeping a wolf-dog, let me know first. There's some things you'll need to be aware of before you make that very serious committment. The average lifespan of a wolf-dog far exceeds the life expectencies of domesticated breeds. Most live at least 20 years, and some have pushed 25 years before they died of old age. Zabiel was (still is) fit as a fiddle and the only time I took him to a vet's office was for a rabies vaccination when he was a year old (that in itself was an adventure). The vet was impressed with his health and condition and could tell when we walked into his office that Zabiel was no ordinary customer. They need lots of activity and attention and if left alone for long periods, can be become destructive and exceedingly mischevious. I had to leave Zabiel tied up for a few days while I worked on a job out of state. Some unwitting kid had left their bicycle in his reach (kids would stop and play with Zabiel all of the time, he loved kids). When I came back from the job, Zabiel had shredded the bicycle. All that was left of the bike was the frame (slobbered on prodigously) and the handlebars. Spread out in front of him on the ground was the remains of the foam seat, the tires, and the handlebar grips. Oh, and somehow he had gotten hold of a coke can, too. He had it shredded into hundreds of tiny little pieces.