The Dogs of Sanawari

Well, really it is the Dogs of Arusha but never mind.

In an earlier story I wrote that dog droppings had to be removed before a table was set for us outside. You don't want to eat close to that stuff!

There was one dog that lived by the butcher shop, poor thing had no power in its hind legs and had to drag itself along using the front ones - I wondered why someone had not 'put it out of its misery! It should be remembered that Rabies is indemic to Tanzania and these amimals carry other diseases!

The reason is that Tanzanians do not like killing dogs, or cats for that matter, but I learned that much later. Later too a certain national group who had a taste for dog meat, were roundly criticised by the locals - it showed through that generally Tanzanians respect dogs.

Actually though dogs were a bother to me. People kept them mainly to guard property, but in reality, the dogs slept through the heat of the day, and congregated into packs at night - absconding from the place they were supposed to be guarding. Of course they would fight, or squabble, over food and when there was a bitch on heat, there was much barking and fighting.

Now they did not respect my nursery, and they would trample over the nicely lined out pots of trees, and generally make a mess.And outside our bedroom where there was a large area of grass, they would routinely carry out their noisy mating rituals.

I could not prevent the problems in the nursery, because it was situated at the back of the house, but even at night, I am not so docile, I could do something about the chaos out front!

I had a good collection of torch batteries - well you use a torch a lot when there are power cuts; and the batteries were not all that good at the time. I had about 20 batteries lined up on the windowsill beside the front door. Whenever the dogs began their ritual, I would climb out of bed and open fire at them - throwing the batteries. This would make them scatter and move on. The first job next morning was to collect up my batteries and set them on the windowsill once more!

Revenge can be sweet, and I did get mine. One moonlit night the dogs began their commotion outside and I knew this time there was a bitch on heat! I could plainly see her in the moonlight with some mongrel mounted upon her. My aim was good and I hit her on the shoulder and she yelped! But her suitor was stuck, knotted, as dogs sometimes do, and I kept up my barrage. She dragged him through the bougainvillea hedge - yes dragged him, he would have felt some pain and the hedge was prickly - I still smile when I think of it!

On occasion we would stay, or friends would stay at Spiritan House in Arusha - those that stay there are fortunate indeed, it is a good place to stay. But in that area the dogs are even worse. At Sanawari they are not around every night, but it is almost every night at Spiritans! Even at Makumira there was a problem but only perhaps once a month.

Responding to complaints the Arusha Municipal Council acted and sent out shooting parties. They used shotguns - hopefully for the safety of the population - but I think they wounded more than they killed. These dogs were not attended to, nor were the dead ones.

This raises another thing! There is plenty of dog carnage on the road, but I have never seen hawks, eagles, hyenas, cats, other dogs feeding on them. They just seem to become pulverised by lorries and other vehicles until there is nothing left of them! Curious eh?

When we were at Makumira, the Headmaster of the secondary school lived next door but up hill slightly from us. He became insecure and purchased from the Police Department, two Alsatian guard dogs. Each at a cost of Tsh100 000/-. I'm not aware that these dogs actually scared anyone away ( there were six night guards and one was always at the headmaster's house) probably everyone knew there were dogs there. He would tie them up as far away from his bedroom as possible, and usually right beneath ours! These dogs were not too bad, but when the village dogs began their barking, so did the guard dogs. I would go to the guards and ask them to move the dogs away and they would do so. I also told the Headmaster they disturbed us, but he continued to tie them there and I continued to get them moved each night.

But one night I went to ask for the dogs to be moved, and there were two guards; both fast asleep with the dogs roaring not ten feet away! I kicked one's foot to wake him and he did not wake immediately (probably piwa) but I was amazed how they had slept through all that noise!

If you happen to be queasy, don't read on, and if you do read on, don't think too badly of me :-]

The outlet from the bathroom washbasin just poured onto the ground outside, so I suggested to Big E that it might be a good idea to dig a soak hole. It might be healthier too! He agreed and had Veronica's father dig a hole about 1metre x 1meter and 1.5metres deep. I had expected the hole to be filled with large stones, but this never happened.

Young Olotu and his friend Bazili decided to use the soil from the hole to make bricks, and I was interested in the technique of making the sun-dried bricks. I asked what they would do with the bricks, expecting them to be selling them.

'We are going to make a dog house!' Olotu announced.

I hoped my face did not show my horror! Now I like dogs, and have had many dogs, and I like to train them well! But I did believe that we didn't need another dog around here! I firmly believed it!

'Where are you going to build the house?' I asked, suspicious that I knew where!

'Just here.' came the reply.

'Not likely.' I said under my breath and successfully negotiated with Big E for it to be built on the other side of the house!

Well the dog arrived, a nice-looking dog and I noticed straight away that it was a bitch! Oh happy day! Not too long after, Olotu came to tell me that she had delivered four pups! Oh Happy day!

The pups began to walk around and were not too much bother to me until one night they fell down the soak-hole! Their yelping was too much for me, so I crawled out of bed and climbed down into the hole and tossed them out. Next night the same; night after, the same. That was three in a row - the novelty had worn off!

Forth night the yelping started again, and I looked for something stout, and decided on my short shovel - I took it to the hole with me. The first pup received a firm clout on the back of the head and I tossed it out of the hole! The next must have had a harder head! The shovel went 'Doinggg' like a bell and the pup howled out, so I clouted it again, with the same effect! Panicking a bit as I feared I might be heard, I cracked it again, (well it was dark!) and this time it made no sound. Too afraid that I might be caught in the act, I tossed the other two out and took the two dead ones to the garden and buried them.

I felt very guilty and more so when I saw Olotu looking for the missing pups! We were talking about them when the mother of the pups walked across the garden and dug up one of the pups! Olotu was amazed and wondered how the pup had got there. I shook my head.

The other two pups were actually stolen a few weeks later and the bitch never had any more pups while we were there.

I'm sure Olotu would forgive me for what I did but I did have a good reason for doing it albeit perverse.