Marley: A Dog Like No Other
Mrs. Chesney's Notes
Preface: The Perfect Dog
When John was 10 years old, his Dad took him to a farm to get a dog. He rattled the puppy pen and chose a dog that was not timid. He named him Shaun, whom he later called Saint Shaun because he was such a good dog. Shaun learned quickly and was John's best friend through his childhood. He was the perfect dog.
Chapter 1: And Puppy Makes Three
It is 1991. John and his wife of one year, Jenny, live in Florida. They go to a farm to choose a puppy. They meet the owner, Lori, and the mother dog, Lily, who is calm and gentle. John and Jenny meet the puppies and select one that did not scare easily, in fact it charged into John's ankles. Jenny called it the clearance dog since it was only $350 while the others ranged from $375 to $400. They wrote a check and would return for the puppy when it was 8 weeks old. As they walked to the car, they met the father dog - a huge, wild, Labrador who was running from the woods covered in mud and burrs. Jenny gasped.
Chapter 2: Homeward Bound
John picked Marley up by himself since Jenny was in Disney World that day. Marley barreled right into his ankles. They named him Marley after Bob Marley, a reggae singer. John made a comfortable "nest" from towels on the passenger seat for Marley, but he wiggled out of them. He ended up on John's lap and his tail wagged to different rhythms depending on where he was petted.
When they got home, Marley sniffed every inch of the house and seemed pleased with his new home. He was not happy with his bedroom - the garage. Even though he had a box with a blanket, chew toys, food and water, he missed his siblings. He cried when left alone for a half hour. John carried his box to the bedroom. They fell asleep with John petting him inside his box.
Chapter 3: Mr. Wiggles
John spent the next 3 days playing with Marley and house training him. Marley loved to play tug of war with a hand towel, gnaw on everything, and run with the end of the toilet paper roll in his mouth. Jenny came home from Disney World and immediately began to "mother" Marley by feeding him, petting him, taking out at night for bathroom breaks. Marley had a tremendous appetite and grew at a fast rate. He was 22 pounds when they brought him home and now he weighed 50 pounds. They called him Mr. Wiggles because his entire body wiggled when he wagged his tail. He often knocked over small items like picture frames, so they had to be moved to a higher place. Because Marley is a retriever, he loved to take items and run with them causing John to chase him and pry open his mouth to discover objects such as paper clips, paper towels, grocery receipts, and bottle caps. In the evenings, John and Jenny took Marley for walks, or rather Marley took them for walks. He just seemed to love life.
Chapter 4: Master and Beast
Marley had now grown into his adult body. The vet said that they would have a big boy. When Marley stood on his hind legs, he met John eye to eye with his paws on John's shoulders. Marley was a "beast" when anyone came to the house as he would race to the door slamming into it and barking with excitement to see the visitor often scaring the unsuspecting person. They took Marley to the beach to play "fetch" as most retrievers have a natural instinct for this game. Marley would fetch a stick thrown into the water, but he would not return it. Instead he enjoyed playing keep-away. John taught him to let go of the stick by playing fetch games with him. Marley played until he was finally tired out. They walked home with a much calmer Marley, wet and covered in sand. John thought that Marley was learning, but Jenny wasn't so sure.
Chapter 5: A Battle of Wills
Jenny was right - Marley was having trouble learning, so they took him to obedience school. On the first day, Marley saw all the dogs with their owners as they pulled up. He got so excited that he leaped from the car and raced to meet the other dogs before John could stop him. John chased him, but Marley eluded him until finally John jumped on Marley's leash stopping him suddenly. The instructor was not amused. Jenny tried to lead Marley through the class, but Marley had other ideas. He ran to greet a poodle dragging Jenny behind him. He would not listen to Jenny's command to sit and jumped on her and rolled on his back to have his belly rubbed. At the end of class the instructor told them that they needed to get that animal under control. A week later John returned for the 2nd class without Jenny. When they practiced the Heel command Marley pulled and yanked at the leash until John thought that he would strangle himself. The instructor took Marley's leash to show John how to command a dog; however, Marley pulled the instructor as well. John felt a perverse sense of pride knowing that Marley wouldn't listen to her either. After class, the instructor talked to John privately. She told him that Marley might be too young for the class and was distracting the other dogs. She offered to refund John's money. Marley responded by lifting his leg nearly hitting the instructor. Now John decided that he would train Marley himself. He began in the backyard with "sit" and "down". The "stay" command took a little more work, but Marley did it with too much exuberance. He barreled into John knocking him to the ground because he was so excited. A terrible thunderstorm struck while Jenny and John were at work, and Marley was so distressed that he destroyed items in the garage and clawed/chewed a hole in the door to the house leaving his paws and muzzle bloody. He looked ashamed at first, but seen returned to his happy self when Jenny and John cleaned up him and his mess.
Chapter 6: The Great Escape
John and Jenny took Marley for a car ride to the vet's office to get fixed. Marley is excited any time he goes on a trip in the car. Jenny drove and John sat in the passenger's seat. Marley started out in the back but ended up on John's lap enjoying the rushing wind through the window. As Jenny and John talked, Marley crept further out of the window while the car was moving until he tried to jump out. Jenny hollered for John to grab him, and John grabbed Marley's tail. As Jenny slammed on the brakes, Marley's front paws were trotting along beside the car as John tried to pull him back. Jenny stopped the car, but John and Marley were stuck. Jenny got out of the car, held on to Marley until John could get out to help her get the dog back inside the car. Meanwhile, the mechanics at the gas station across the street had a great morning laugh watching this performance.
Chapter 7: The Things He Ate
One food that Marley loved was the mangoes from the mango tree in the backyard. He could spend 4 hours in the yard peeling off the skin, eating the fruit, and sucking off every bit of mango from the pit over and over again. Because of this, his piles of dog poop glowed orange. In the orange piles John would find the other things that Marley had eaten - rubber bands, tissues, handiwipes, soda pop bottle cap, cap to a ballpoint pen, part of a comb, etc. Jenny wanted Marley to stay in the house instead of the garage when they were gone. Even on short outings, they would return to find damaged items (stereo speakers, pillows, footstool leg). John would find evidence of the destruction in the backyard the next morning. John bought Jenny and 18K gold necklace and Marley ended up with it dangling from his mouth. They knew he had it when he began the "Marley Mambo". They cornered Marley, but as they tried to grab him, he swallowed the necklace. John knew that he would eventually find it in the yard, so he spent the next several days picking Marley's poop apart with a stick and the garden hose. Finally, on the fourth day, he found and odd brown lump in Marley's pile. The water from the garden hose revealed the glimmer of gold. Jenny was thrilled to get her necklace back.
Chapter 8: The Dog's Gotta Go
By 1993 they had 2 children, Patrick and Conor. Jenny was worn out from taking care of the children and Marley. She had a breakdown when Marley tore a couch cushion apart and told John to find a new home for him. John took Marley for a long walk while Jenny calmed down. When he returned, Jenny was feeding the boys. Marley got a drink and John hoped that Jenny had forgiven Marley. She hadn't. For the next several weeks John began intensive training sessions with Marley, even enrolling him in obedience school again while he looked for a new home for him. This time Marley passed the class coming in 7th among 8 dogs. He ate his diploma and John sang "We Are the Champions" on the ride home.
Chapter 9: The Final Round
The only thing John had left to do was to train Marley not to jump on people. Another dog owner told him to knee Marley in the chest the next time he tried to jump and that would cure him of jumping. John tried it, but felt bad for hurting Marley. It worked - Marley stopped jumping on John but not everyone else. So John asked a friend from work, Jim, to help him. Jim came to their house after work and rang the doorbell. Marley zoomed to greet Jim with a jump but Jim kneed him as John had told him to and he knocked the wind out of the dog. Marley never again jumped on anyone. Eventually, Jenny forgave Marley and he remained a member of the Grogan family.
Chapter 10: The Audition
Marley got a chance to audition for a movie when a reporter had taken photographs for the Grogans at home for a piece about typical families from Florida. She called Jenny to inquire if they were interested in having Marley audition for the part of a big, dumb, loopy family dog in a movie called The Last Homerun. Colleen took him to the audition and he tore about the place - he was perfect for the part. Even though they would not be paid for Marley's efforts, they were proud that he was going to be in a movie. One the first day of shooting, Jenny bathed Marley and brushed his teeth - no easy task. They loaded to boys and the dog in the car and drove to the hotel where the filming was to be done. As they got closer, they discovered a traffic jam from all the spectators wanting to watch the production. Police officers were diverting traffic, but when they found out the John had the dog for the movie, they were sent right through. They felt like royalty. The set was bustling with people getting ready to shoot the first scene. The family pulls up in a minivan and the children get out with the boy walking the dog (Marley) on a leash. The director told the actors that the dog was a little nutty, but to work around him. On the first take, the minivan door opens and Marley bursts out. Cut! The second, third, and fourth, were not much better. Marley gnawed through the leash and John had to go buy another one. Marley's behavior worsened as the scenes continued. At the end of the day, a director's assistant told John not to bring Marley back unless they called. His acting career was over.
Chapter 11: Take Two
The next day, the assistant called to tell John that the director wanted Marley back. It turned out that Marley had given them the most lively, hilarious footage for the film. Marley remained on the set for 4 more days. The crew and assistants treated him like a king. One assistant even followed him around the set with a bowl and a water bottle to give him drinks whenever he wanted. Two years later, John asked a clerk at Blockbuster Video if they had the movie The Last Homerun in stock. They did. John took the VHS home and the whole family watched Marley act. Everyone in the family cheered, except Marley - he yawned and fell asleep under the coffee table. Marley's credits on the movie read Marley the Dog…as himself.
Chapter 12: Jail Break
One month after the movie shooting ended, the Grogan family moved to Boca Raton because they needed a bigger house. It had a swimming pool that Marley loved. But it did not have a safe place to put Marley when the family was away. They tried the laundry room, but Marley scratched the door. Then a thunderstorm roared through the area, and they came home to see a crime scene in their laundry room. Marley was covered blood from digging a huge hole in the wall exposing electrical wires, plaster and wood chips were strewn all over the floor as well as nails. Marley curled up on the kitchen rug and John stroked his fur and told him "I know you can't help it". The next thing they tried was a large steel cage. Marley seemed to be fine with it. So the family went out to dinner and a stroll on the beach leaving Marley at home in the pen. For the first time John and Jenny felt at ease leaving Marley at home because they did not have to worry about him destroying anything or hurting himself. When they returned home they found that Marley had unlocked the 2 locks on the pen and freed himself. John tried to secure the locks, but Marley pried back the corner of the pen and got stuck trying to get out. They reinforced every part that Marley mangled trying to get free until the cage was so bent out of shape that the door would not even close properly. So much for peace of mind.
Chapter 13: Dinner Time!
In Boca Raton, most people owned small, "sophisticated" dogs. Marley was a sharp contrast and often snubbed by the other dogs and owners. It was common for people to eat at outside restaurants with their perfect pooches, so John and Jenny decided to take their family out for this experience too. They went to a restaurant with outside tables, hooked Marley's leash to the table leg, and ordered drinks. Just as Jenny made a toast to her beautiful family, it all ended. Marley charged to go meet a French poodle 50 feet away dragging the table behind him. John and Jenny raced to catch the runaway table and reel Marley in. All the other diners stared at them in horror and disbelief. They paid for the drinks and left. John read a book entitled No Bad Dogs which described that dogs' misbehaviors were the owners' faults. When a neighbor needed someone to cat-sit for them while they vacationed, John volunteered. All went well until Marley had discovered the litter box. Early one morning Marley woke them with the beating of his tail to show them the treasure that he found in the litter box.