TR EMERITUS

His name is Cecil. He is a seven-year-old golden-doodle. But don’t let that disarm you. Take a long hard look at that face. This is literally a case of “my dog ate my homework.” But this time, it’s cash.

Cecil chowed down US$4,000. No joke. That’s $5,300 in Singapore currency. Bad dog. His owner Carrie Law, 33, said she “almost had a heart attack.”

The young couple, the Laws, withdrew their saving from the bank and left it on the kitchen counter. This happened in Pennsylvania, in December last year. What happens next is Cecil, and his expensive appetite.

It didn’t take long for the little devourer to finish the meal. Just half an hour was all it took for the money to disappear. The news posted on social media became a sensation, but it was a nightmare for the Laws on the beat.

They had to monitor the clueless sheepdog for bowel movements. That was their vet’s advice: what goes in must come out.

Cecil must be wondering, why the extra care and attention all of a sudden? I can’t imagine what the Laws have to go through. US$4000 cash is not a small sum.

I also wonder how they withdrew the money. If it’s from the ATM, fast and swift, then this time, this much anticipated withdrawal, so to speak, would take much longer, and go way beyond pressing a few buttons.

I am sure they would have received many advice on the extraction from netizens. Many have cheered them on.

The bank was kind enough to assure the Laws that “they would accept the damaged bills if the serial numbers were still visible.” They said such incidents are not rare.

The good news came out eventually, every drop of it. “Despite the unpleasant process, which involved washing the remnants of the money retrieved from Cecil’s faecal matter, the couple managed to recover nearly all the money, losing only US$450.” I supposed it was a price worth paying for.

I am happy for the Laws. They got their just deserts. I guess it was served on a silvery platter. They said that Cecil has been forgiven and described him as a “very fancy fellow” with “very expensive taste.”

I bother to post this because it’s funny. Sharing a laugh is a good way to kickstart the morning. It’s called taking a walk on the lighter side of life. For the Laws, it was taking their dog for a walk, while longing for a good outcome.

But, it’s not always funny ending. More than one year ago, the same thing happened to another couple. Their Labrador puppy chewed up $2700, leaving undamaged a sum of $300.

The wife posted it on social media and was crying as she recounted it. It was her husband’s hard earned money from a side hustle as a construction worker.

The Laws should therefore count their blessings. It was a blessing worth every dollar bestowed. You can say that the light at the end of the tunnel for them was the silver linings.

And that’s life, right? You win some, you lose some. At times, you’re lucky, when shit happens.

Michael Jan

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