Fables3_My Dog Zeus

FABLE III: MY DOG ZEUS

Zeus is as outstanding an animal as is my horse, Dauntless. Part Labrador and part Great Dane, Zeus is an exceedingly

large dog, weighing 130 pounds and standing 29 inches tall at his shoulders. Despite his mixed parentage, there is no doubt

that he is a water dog; he would almost rather swim than eat. Each time he returns from a neighborhood excursion, his

brindle coat is dripping with water, a sign of recent immersion. Many feats have been attributed to him but none as daring

and audacious as the one I shall describe here.

One day my youngest son, who was ten at the time, wished to go swimming. Jed was large for his age and an

accomplished swimmer, as were all my children. He could easily swim all day if the occasion called for it. Nevertheless, as

the only water available was the alligator infested river that flowed past our house in Florida, I admonished him that swimming

there was an invitation to death. He, however, having a mind of his own, decided to carry out his desire.

Jed dived into the water and swam across the river and back several times in the next half hour. As he was returning to

the dock on one of his crossings, an alligator at least twelve feet long started to follow him. Zeus, who was watching from the

bank, immediately jumped into the water and swam out to the scene. Before the alligator could open its huge jaws and

clamp them down on the unsuspecting boy, Zeus grabbed the beast’s snout in his powerful jaws and held it closed until the

boy completed his crossing. Zeus then swam to shore, dragging the alligator behind him and did not release his grip until the

monster was too weak to retaliate. Only then was the creature allowed to slither slowly back into the water.