By Maesa Procopio
When flipping through the recent news, the last thing one might anticipate finding is a column written from the perspective of a dog. For the past 6 years, Dan FitzPatrick and his Australian Shepherd, Cadbury, have been working together to produce one-of-a-kind articles, diving into a dog’s perception of the world.
When people first hear that a dog is the genius behind the creation, they might wonder how or why, Dan delivered clear insight into the process behind this. “A number of years ago we got a puppy, and I was spending a lot of time with the puppy outdoors, and I was watching how a dog would interact with the environment, and it was kind of wonderful watching the puppy kind of see things for the first time” he stated. “That got me thinking about how cool it’d be to see things through the eyes of a dog.”
This sparked the idea in Dan to offer that insight and to tell the story of life through his dog’s eyes. Not only was it innovative, but it was fresh and lighthearted.
So, Dan tested out the waters with an article featured in the Greenwich Sentinel, “they seemed to be the most popular things that I was writing,” he noted. Through these columns, he was able to explore life from a different viewpoint, and it seemed to be just what the public wanted.
“Just to give you a sense of how I do it, I wrote an article about Christmas, and it was titled ‘The Tree Indoors.’ It’s the dogs commenting on how unusual humans are because this time of year they go and they cut a perfectly good tree down and they bring it inside the house, what’s that about?” Dan said.
One of the best aspects about it, Dan says, is that because it is a dog’s point of view, it is less likely to receive criticism. “It’s funny because I get to say things and bring up stuff that is easier to do under the guise of a dog. I haven’t been controversial, but you can get into the controversial stuff a little bit because if you’re writing as a dog. No one’s going to cancel a dog.”
The topics that Dan and Cadbury prefer to write about involve mostly “observing, and kind of observing people from the standpoint of dogs. I’ve got two Australian Shepherds and I kind of pretend that they’re having these conversations.”
Along with Cadbury is his pal, Logan. While Cadbury prefers to spend his time playing with toys, specifically his fvorite small green alligator, Logan can be found running free in the yard, likely barking at people walking by. “Not in a menacing way,” added Dan, “but just to get them to come play with him.”
Dan stated that he’s always found it to be important to have two dogs because it “adds to the feng shui of the house.” They are not only each other’s companions, but they are family members within the household.
This furry duo grants various levels of insight. Logan is 14 years old, and Cadbury is at the mere age of 5, “so a lot of these articles have Logan kind of passing on the wisdom of his age and his observations of the humans that they witness” added Dan.
To quote one of their recent articles about the New Year, Cadbury asks Logan “why the humans place so much significance on this one particular day,” and throughout the article we hear Logan’s heartfelt and comforting response, explaining that humans can be so cognizant and worried about time, while dogs are just appreciative of the very moment.
Logan replies: “While I feel for our humans, I am very grateful that I am a dog. You and I get to sit or run around our yard every day, experiencing the weather, watching the squirrels and rabbits, the falling leaves and the drifting snow, and greeting passersby with a hearty bark. Life is good, and we enjoy it. We give very little thought to tomorrow, as it will come when it comes and will be what it will be. The day may be boring, it may be eventful, it may be challenging; we don’t know, and we can’t in any event change it. Instead, we get to spend almost all of our time and attention being together, in the moment, appreciating and enjoying what we have in front of us right now.”
Cadbury’s humble and sincere pieces offer a breath of fresh air and are sure to get your tail wagging. To read more on Dan and Cadbury, or to revel in a few of their articles, visit their website at danielmfitzpatrick.com.
