Blackie the Doggie

This is Blackie. He is so black that it's difficult to see his eyes in the picture. He is the day/night guard at the church. When he first came to the church, he was only a little bigger than my palm. He was not even able to cross that drain in the picture. I remember one of his front legs fell into it and he was yelping weakly. Pr. Andrew Hau bought him from a vet. After 1 year+, he has grown up to this size, and is still growing. Now he can jump so far that crossing 2 or 3 drains is not a problem for him. He runs fast too. Blackie is very strong; he broke his chain (it's made from iron!) a few times.

A closer look at Blackie:

 Now you can see his eyes better

Blackie also barks very very loudly. He barks at a cat, a stranger who walks by, a car that passes by. But he never barked at me nor Pr.WS, because he knew us since he was a baby. He eats very very fast too. He eats one meal per day in the evening and he could finish it within 5 minutes (I don't think he ever chewed his food). He eats everything, including jackfruit seeds, durian, tuna sandwitches etc. That's why Blackie is not only a good watch dog, but also a good janitor, because he cleans up all the leftover food.

Pr.WS patting Blackie

 

Blackie enjoys being patted. Every time he saw us he would lower his head and wait to be patted.

Frequently Blackie got overexcited during patting and started to lean on people. Then his master would take out his disciplinary tool - a ROTAN (cane in Malay) - and gave the dog a smack. Blackie is afraid of that stick. Even before it struck him, he became quiet and behaved himself. But then when the rotan is kept, he would revert to his overexcitement.

Sorry to say this, Blackie is a bit racist. He barks super loudly at people who are non-yellow, including the Indians, Africans, and Whites. Probably he is already used to staying with Chinese.

Blackie is a hero. Because of him and another dog (Bobby, he has another story, will tell you next time), the recent break-in at parsonage failed. I guess they barked too much that the thieves got nervous and ran away taking only a very old guitar (which don't have much second-hand price). At night their master release them and they patrol the whole church compound, digging holes here and there and marking their territory (how? :-P).

So next time when you see Blackie, remember to pat him. If he barks at you, it means that you need to spend more time making friends with him (talk to him nicely)!