buster, c.2008–2026

a canine obituary

He was a good dog, which is to say, he was a bad dog a lot of the time. He loved food, killing small animals, and ignoring commands. He had classic midcentury good looks, like he’d just stepped out of a Coca-Cola advertisement to check things out. He loved certain people devotedly and the rest he regarded with a wary tolerance. To those he loved he would be sweet and affectionate, even climbing into your lap until his old age meant that this was too uncomfortable for him. Still, his favorite way to be with others was not to sit in their lap but to lie down near them while they did something else. He liked companionship but only rarely wanted direct attention. He really liked it if you sat down on the floor with him but didn’t touch him.

We adopted him, along with his brother (who predeceased him), from an animal shelter. They had given him the name “Porter,” which didn’t fit at all. When he first arrived from the animal shelter he eventually grew willing to trust me and my mother, but …