Fred and Iand a Dash of Pepper

Foreword by Sir Ranulph FiennesIllustrations by Tony Grogan

Prof. Fred Huggins DHH

Lauren Singer Rt Hon, Capt. Paddington Pepper DHH

‘They were getting another dog from the Guide Dog Association... Granted, my heart is not as strong as it used to be and I have to take tablets for the rest of my life. So what if my hind legs trouble me constantly? My coat has also gone a little grey, but that’s rather professorial, isn’t it?’

Fred is about to be joined by Pepper at the home of Lauren Singer. Lauren has multiple sclerosis and Fred, a Service Dog, has for many years been her faithful friend, fetching, carrying, supporting – and sometimes going beyond the call of duty by escaping and getting up to mischief. But now Fred is not well and his place as senior hound is about to be usurped by a ‘hoity-toity, namby-pamby, I-am-better-than-thou’ dog.

Fred, a lovable and loyal character, tells his story in a humorous and poignant manner. And there is a ‘dash’ of both Pepper and Lauren thrown in for good measure. You will laugh, you will cry, but above all, you will be touched by this heart-warming story of a dog and his loved ones.

That the remarkable and courageous Lauren Singer has been able to tell the story of the dogs in her life is a beacon of hope to all those facing seemingly insurmountable diffi culties.

Foreword by Sir Ranulph FiennesIllustrations by Tony Grogan

Fred

and

Ia

nd

a D

ash o

f Pep

pe

rLa

uren Sing

er

heart-warming story of a dog and his loved ones.

That the remarkable and courageous

AmberMoish

& Deeni Singer

9 781431 401659

ISBN 978-1-4314-0165-9 www.jacana.co.za

Fred and Iand a Dash of Pepper

Foreword by Sir Ranulph FiennesIllustrations by Tony Grogan

Prof. Fred Huggins DHH

Lauren Singer Rt Hon, Capt. Paddington Pepper DHH

FRED_AND_I.indd 3 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

Published by Jacana Media (Pty) Ltd in 2011

10 Orange Street Sunnyside Auckland Park 2092 South Africa +2711 628 3200 www.jacana.co.za

© Lauren Singer, 2011

All rights reserved.

Fred at your Service Ma’am is available on audible.com

Every attempt has been made to acquire permission for the quotations. All use has been done under the fair-use copyright principle.

ISBN 978-1-4314-0165-9

Job No. 001538 Set in Sabon 11.5/16pt Printed and bound by Ultra Litho (Pty) Limited, Johannesburg

See a complete list of Jacana titles at www.jacana.co.za

FRED_AND_I.indd 4 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

To my dearest Dad I miss you as I breathe and as I breathe I love you.

Our lives are forever changed without you.

To Dr Steve Kitley Fred’s best friend – with gratitude and love.

FRED_AND_I.indd 5 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

xii

It always helps to have a hero…

… and I have one. He has been mine since I read his autobiography, Living Dangerously, which I had taken out of the British Council Library when I lived in Jerusalem. Way back when I never knew that multiple sclerosis was stealthily messing up my life.

I returned to Cape Town, was diagnosed with MS and lived my life as best as I could.

Then I heard again of my hero. He was coming to Cape Town to promote his new book, Mind Over Matter.

And I was going to hear him. Maybe even meet him. Ranulph Fiennes. My hero.

Ranulph Fiennes, the intrepid explorer and author, had crossed the Antarctic Continent and had written about the expedition in his book, Mind Over Matter. He had also raised enough money to build and launch a massive Multiple Sclerosis Research Centre in Cambridge, England.

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xiii

And get this, I did meet him and when I told him I had MS, he stopped and looked at me with greater attention.

‘Have you read the dedication?’ he asked softly.

I nodded and with awe asked, ‘May I shake your hand, sir?’

‘With pleasure,’ he answered.

And I shook the hand of my hero, Sir Ranulph Fiennes.

Or ‘Ran’ as he familiarly signed himself.

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xiv

FRED_AND_I.indd 14 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

1

Contents

1 GoodyFourPawsandtheHooligan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

2 Abucketonyourhead,Mazeltov . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

3 Sowhat’smoney,anyway? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

4 Sweetrevenge? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

5 Ritesofpassage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

6 Lightningcanstriketwice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

7 Ourdearestdad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

8 Teachinganewdogoldtricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

9 ThePepperRevolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

10 TheRevolutionthatWasn’torTenDaysthatdidn’tShaketheWorld . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

11 Heroes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

12 Heroesrevisited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

13 Mylastlesson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

14 Inmyownvoice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

15 Pepperspeaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

16 Myfinalwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

TheSouthAfricanGuideDogsAssociation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Endnotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

FRED_AND_I.indd 1 2011/07/13 9:45 AM

‘I am a serviette-eater.’

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3

ONE

Goody Four Paws and the Hooligan

‘A really companionable and indispensable dog is an accident of nature. You can’t get it by breeding

for it, and you can’t buy it with money. It just happens along.’

EB White, The Care and Training of a Dog

How did Lauren come to know about Service Dogs? Of course she knew about Guide Dogs. She had read and loved the book Emma and I, and when she was first at university in Cape Town she always smiled when she saw a student with a Guide Dog. She had also seen on television how dogs help people with disabilities.

Then she read about Wizard. Wizard and Heidi. Heidi had her own coffee shop and she was in a wheelchair. Lauren read how Heidi was helped by Wizard and what a wonderful pair they made.

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4

‘Great,’ Lauren said, ‘I also want a Service Dog. I am sure that I can be helped and that my life will be made just a little bit easier.’

Lauren could still walk at this time. But multiple sclerosis is a mischievous beast, so it was always peeping over her shoulder. But she could walk, with a stick. And all unsteady. So the thought was tucked behind many others in her mind. Then one day she saw Heidi in the distance.

‘Excuse me,’ she panted as she hurried to Heidi, ‘excuse me, can I ask you about your dog? He comes from the Guide Dogs Association, doesn’t he? Please tell me, was he very expensive?’

‘Yes, he did come from the Guide Dogs Association but he didn’t cost very much. He cost far more to train! But if you need a dog, the Guide Dogs Association will charge you very little.’

Heidi told her that she had to apply to the Guide Dogs Association and they would interview and assess her and take care of the rest.

So Lauren called her friend Stephanie, who lived in Johannesburg, to make enquiries. Anyway, to cut a long story short, she was sent a form to fill in, she was interviewed and then she met me!

I was trained to be a Service Dog – to help someone who was in a wheelchair, to open doors, to pick things up that had fallen. And here was Lauren who had come from Cape Town to be

FRED_AND_I.indd 4 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

5

trained with me. She could still walk, could open doors herself and could pick things up off the floor. She didn’t even need a wheelchair. I learnt that she had this nasty condition called multiple sclerosis. What she was able to do today she might not be able to do tomorrow. So, I had my job cut out for me. La and I trained together for two weeks. The night before we left for Cape Town, my birth mother said to me, ‘Serve with honour and pride, my boy’.

Wise words that meant nothing to me then.

And so I eventually arrived at the Singer household. I was only one year old, barely out of puppyhood and full of tear-away spirit. Lauren could not wait to introduce me to Heidi and Wizard.

We went to the Mall, which is Lauren’s favourite place, and quickly went to Heidi’s coffee shop. Well it wasn’t really quickly. As I said, Lauren could still walk but this was the first time that she and I were working on our own. This was new territory. I tried terribly hard to concentrate on the job at hand, but there were so many new smells and so many new people to see. We did get there, eventually, and Lauren gratefully sat down. Heidi came up to us full of smiles. Walking next to her was Wizard!

Hey, a fellow hound. I had so much to discuss with him, but first I had to get to know him. We sniffed each other all over. This was thrilling. He had been to my alma mater (the Guide Dogs

FRED_AND_I.indd 5 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

6

Association), knew the people there and knew the routine. I was ready to play and run and generally have a good time.

‘Come on,’ I barked, ‘show me the secret nooks and crannies. So much to do, so much to see.’

‘Come on,’ I barked at Wizard.

‘Sorry? What did you say? It is neither the time nor the place to tear away and leave our responsibilities. I am working, can’t you see?’ Wizard firmly put me in my place. Like a bucket of cold water dumped on my head, he doused my excitement. Fine, if he didn’t want to join me, I would have to have all the enjoyment on my own.

Lauren and Heidi were still chatting.

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7

‘He’s only young, I know, but sometimes I find it so difficult to control him,’ Lauren was saying.

Difficult to control me? Control me? Something sounded very odd. Where was the partnership? Where was the camaraderie?

‘I will have to use the “halty”. I hate to use it, but what choice do I have?’

Halty? The strap device that is put over my head and makes it so difficult for me to pull and have my own way? That’s a bit radical, surely?

‘Sorry, Fred. I just don’t have the strength to argue with you. Look at Wizard, he is so controlled and so good and does his job so well. What is the bet he never needed a halty,’ Lauren mumbled.

A few weeks later, Lauren happened to meet up with Ruda Landman from Carte Blanche when we were at the airport. Ruda came up to us and wanted to know all about me.

‘Why don’t you do a show on him? It will be good publicity for the Guide Dogs Association,’ Lauren suggested.

Lauren also suggested that they include Heidi and Wizard.

And so the television crew came to Cape Town to film me… and Lauren and Wizard and Heidi.

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8

‘And so the television crew came to Cape Town to film me…’

They found me and Lauren at the University of Cape Town where we worked at The Centre for Russian Studies. I had the opportunity to do a few of my duties on film. I showed how I helped Lauren walk, could fetch an envelope for her, where I sat next to her by the computer. Quite impressive, I thought. They also came to our house and filmed us there. And Lauren talked and talked.

She told them and the whole of South Africa how sometimes I would run away from her at the university. She said I went ‘AWOL’. Absent With Out Leave! Hold it. I never thought that

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9

I would have to ask her permission for a reconnoitre of the wonderful university grounds. Obviously I was wrong. It took me a bit of time to learn that, but I now know I can’t run around at a whim.

And then there was Wizard. Now wasn’t he good? He helped Heidi do her banking, was sent on errands (on his own) and generally helped around the coffee shop. He brought people serviettes and menus. He would never bark out of turn or chew up the serviettes. Never.

The Carte Blanche programme was a great success. Lauren still sometimes watches a repeat of the programme.

‘Look, I could still walk then. A little bit stiff, but I could still walk,’ she says, her voice shaky. ‘Hey, there is my professor, Professor Davidson.’

And what about me? I look so young.

And what about Wizard? Poor Wizard has passed away – heart attack.

Still, for me, Wizard remains the paragon of duty and service.

And what did we call him? Goody Four Paws. Always doing the right thing.

But what did Wizard and Heidi call me? The Hooligan. An epithet I remain inordinately proud of.

But read the rest of my book, and make up your own mind.

FRED_AND_I.indd 9 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

‘A bucket on your head, Mazeltov!’

FRED_AND_I.indd 10 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

11

‘A bucket on your head, Mazeltov!’

TWO

A bucket on your head, Mazeltov

Frizzy hair is on your head You want to have it straight instead

Curly, and dry as rocksThat just about describes my locks.

Susan Marraf, copyright 2007

Lauren says she has been inflicted with a terrible burden. She thinks that when she was in her mother’s womb an angel came to speak to her.

‘Lauren,’ the angel said, ‘Lauren, G-d is going to give you something that you will find very hard to cope with. But know that He will be with you. One day you may even thank Him.’

And what was Lauren given?

Frizzy hair.

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12

‘Lauren’s frizzy hair has been the bane of her life.’

‘My frizzy hair has been the bane of my life for as long as I remember,’ Lauren complains, ‘Just look at it! No matter what I do, what I put on it, it frizzes.’

Actually, I think it has quite a becoming curl. But try to convince Lauren of that. Every month or so Lauren goes to see Wayne, the Master Hairdresser.

I love it when Lauren goes to the hairdresser. I have such fun.

It is all a matter of timing. And the bark.

When she has her hair washed, I look around and give a tentative bark. Lauren reacts quickly.

‘Quiet, Fred,’ she whispers.

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13

Then I give another couple of barks, each one a little louder than the first.

And the reaction?

‘Oh Fred, be quiet!’ Lauren says with more conviction.

‘I’ll take him out for a little walk if you like,’ says one of the hairdressers.

‘Oh, would you?’ Lauren says appreciatively.

So I go out for a little walk and have a quick wee, sniff about and generally enjoy the break.

I often complain to Lauren.

‘You sometimes have your hair coloured. So what about me having a Dalmatian tint?’ I suggest.

‘Don’t be silly! You have the most beautiful blonde hair, why ruin it?’ Lauren sighs.

Sometimes I do have a hair cut. I go to Dr Steve, my personal physician, my vet. They have a wonderful place there. Tantalising smells, friendly people who always welcome me. They have a hair stylist there who gives us dogs a groom. But before they do, Lauren gives her instructions.

‘Please cut his nails and don’t cut too much off his coat,’ Lauren instructs.

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14

Then one hot summer’s day I felt an itch. So I scratched and scratched. And it itched more, so I scratched more.

‘I felt an itch so I scratched, and scratched.’

I felt terribly uncomfortable. It wasn’t just the heat (I had asked Lauren for my summer coat but she told me that I was already wearing it. Could have fooled me). It was that horrid itch that seemed to spread. No matter what I did, I still felt uncomfortable.

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15

‘I hope that he hasn’t got any “hot spots”. The poor boy is scratching himself to bits. He can’t have fleas because he’s been sprayed. I bet he’s got a hot spot,’ Lauren sounded worried.

Ma (Lauren’s mother) was also worried so she put my lead on and took me to see Dr Steve. Lauren stayed at home and entrusted me to Ma. I knew that the heat had got to Lauren as well, and that it was too difficult for her to get up and onto her scooter to go out. But I trust Ma as I do Lauren.

I knew that they would fix me up properly and that I would no longer have to scratch and scratch. But how were they going to do it? What were they going to do?

‘I am sorry, Fred,’ the groomer at the vet said, ‘I am going to have to shave you. The damage has been too great.’

Damage? What does she mean, ‘Damage’?

I heard the hair clippers coming closer. Maybe they will just shave a little bit off?

With a shudder I submitted to the humiliation. Yes, I was shaved. My tummy was shaved. And then my coat behind my back legs was shaved. The bottom of my tail was shaved. Would she ever stop?

‘You see?’ Dr Steve said pointing to my naked skin. ‘You see how red and inflamed his skin has become? This skin irritation could have been started by many things. A fleabite might start it. Okay, so Fred doesn’t have any fleas but he might have rolled

FRED_AND_I.indd 15 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

16

in the grass and something from there could have irritated his skin. Once the skin inflammation starts, it spreads very quickly. So, we’ll give him an injection and a few tablets to take home. But most important, we have to stop him from scratching. Of course we will put on a lotion and you will have to put it on twice a day. That may soothe the irritation, but he must not lick or scratch his skin.’

Ma listened to this without a word.

And then Dr Steve said, ‘Fred, you will have to wear a special collar for at least a week.’

They took off my leather collar and threaded it through the bottom of a horrid plastic cone. Oh, it was a diabolically clever device. It effectively stopped me from reaching round to my behind to give it a quick lick or scratch. I hated it. What would Lauren say?

As soon as I got home I ran to her. Perhaps she would take it off? Maybe she could console me, tell me that my hair cut was not so bad after all.

‘Oh Fred, what have they done to you?’ Lauren gasped. ‘They have taken all the hair off the back of your legs. And off your tail. You look ghastly!’

Thank you. Thank you. That’s all I needed to hear.

And then she started giggling.

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17

‘A bucket on your head, Mazeltov, Mazeltov. Because your bum is red, Mazeltov, Mazeltov,’ she sang.

Very funny. She took the song from Fiddler on the Roof and changed it. How witty. She insisted on singing it over and over again. If anybody came to visit us, she regaled them with her little song.

I felt naked. I knew that I did not look my handsome best, but there was no need to rub it in. Apparently, I looked so pathetic that they did not want to show me in public. Luckily Lauren still patted me and tickled me behind my ears, and said she would love me forever, no matter how bad my hair looked.

On Friday afternoon, a couple of days later, somebody left the gate open. Freedom. Freedom beckoned. If nobody appreciated me, I would just walk away. So I decided to leave home for a little while. I would come back of course, but I just wanted to see the world beyond our gate. It was so exciting.

Should I go up the road or down? Then left or right? The whole world beckoned. Maybe I should say hello to my friends at the university where we’d worked. Maybe my good pal Armin would take me for a hike in the forest as he had done before.

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18

While I was gone the following happened… Aunty Shirley and Uncle Ivan arrived for Friday night supper and heard Lauren wailing loudly.

‘He’s gone. I don’t know where he is. Fred is not here, where can he be?’

‘I’ll go and look for him,’ Uncle Ivan offered.

‘Ma has gone to find him. Perhaps you can help her. Maybe he has been stolen. What are we going to do if he’s been stolen? I know he’s been kidnapped. I don’t know where I’ll find the million rand ransom. Or even the million dollar ransom. His value is immeasurable,’ Lauren cried querulously.

‘Calm down, Lauren. Nobody would kidnap him, I’m sure,’ Aunty Shirley said soothingly.

‘How do you know? What’s the bet some crooks came and grabbed him? Oh Fred!’ Lauren sobbed.

And then Aunty Shirley shouted with relief, ‘There he is. Your mother is bringing him back.’

I had wandered across Roads Avenue, a busy road. They keep telling me I have no sense of the road. I don’t know what they mean. I just innocently took a walk, explored a little and you would think that the world had collapsed.

After Ma found me, I walked back up the hill to our home with her, the street lights shining above and behind me.

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19

‘Hey, he looks like an alien. With that hood around his head he looks exactly like an alien,’ Aunty Shirley yelled with glee.

‘He also looks like an angel! But who would want to steal him? Just look at him with this cone on his head!’ Ma giggled.

That’s right, just cover me with humiliation. Would it never end?

‘Fred! My handsome, wonderful Fred! I am so relieved to see you,’ Lauren cried as she hugged me.

Forlornly I wagged my tail. Not a fulsome wag, just a little one.

Lauren rubbed my chest and gave me a kiss.

I relaxed against her and sighed.

Hurrh, but it’s good to be home.

FRED_AND_I.indd 19 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

‘Go for the paper first – a nice thick wad with extra flavours and smells.’

FRED_AND_I.indd 20 2011/07/13 9:08 AM

Fred and Iand a Dash of Pepper

Foreword by Sir Ranulph FiennesIllustrations by Tony Grogan

Prof. Fred Huggins DHH

Lauren Singer Rt Hon, Capt. Paddington Pepper DHH

‘They were getting another dog from the Guide Dog Association... Granted, my heart is not as strong as it used to be and I have to take tablets for the rest of my life. So what if my hind legs trouble me constantly? My coat has also gone a little grey, but that’s rather professorial, isn’t it?’

Fred is about to be joined by Pepper at the home of Lauren Singer. Lauren has multiple sclerosis and Fred, a Service Dog, has for many years been her faithful friend, fetching, carrying, supporting – and sometimes going beyond the call of duty by escaping and getting up to mischief. But now Fred is not well and his place as senior hound is about to be usurped by a ‘hoity-toity, namby-pamby, I-am-better-than-thou’ dog.

Fred, a lovable and loyal character, tells his story in a humorous and poignant manner. And there is a ‘dash’ of both Pepper and Lauren thrown in for good measure. You will laugh, you will cry, but above all, you will be touched by this heart-warming story of a dog and his loved ones.

That the remarkable and courageous Lauren Singer has been able to tell the story of the dogs in her life is a beacon of hope to all those facing seemingly insurmountable diffi culties.

Foreword by Sir Ranulph FiennesIllustrations by Tony Grogan

Fred

and

Ia

nd

a D

ash o

f Pep

pe

rLa

uren Sing

er

heart-warming story of a dog and his loved ones.

That the remarkable and courageous

AmberMoish

& Deeni Singer

9 781431 401659

ISBN 978-1-4314-0165-9 www.jacana.co.za