Strange Life of a Cat
Chapter 393 - Chapter 393 Chapter 381 Buying a Dog

Chapter 393: Chapter 381 Buying a Dog Chapter 393: Chapter 381 Buying a Dog Zheng Tan found it baffling. This old man was really something…

“Why are you asking me about getting a dog?”

“Have you ever seen someone consult a cat on what dog to pick?”

Zheng Tan glanced at Old Man Lan and had no intention of responding. How would he know what kind of dog to get? Even if he did, he wouldn’t be able to answer.

However, although Zheng Tan had no plans to deal with it, Old Man Lan wasn’t ready to let Zheng Tan go. He called out to Zheng Tan who was about to leave, then headed towards the small flower bed.

Zheng Tan didn’t quite understand what the old man was up to, but he still followed him. After all, considering the difficulty Old Man Lan had had in recovering, it was only polite to show a little respect.

At that moment, there were two people guarding the small flower bed, one at the main entrance and one at the side. Although Zheng Tan always called it a “small flower bed,” it was far from small. One person might not be able to keep it secure. The flower bed had also undergone renovations; compared to before, its security level had been elevated by several notches.

After entering the small flower bed, Old Man Lan didn’t stay long. Instead, he rode out on his three-wheeled electric bike, the one he used to transport flowers. The cargo area at the back still had some mud that hadn’t been cleaned off from when he last carried flowers.

“Come on, Heitan, hop on. We’re going to buy a dog,” Old Man Lan said to Zheng Tan who was standing by the side.

There had been many people giving Old Man Lan advice lately, and he still hadn’t decided on what kind of dog to get. He liked certain dogs, but their owners didn’t have puppies, and he wasn’t willing to wait another few months. He wanted to settle the matter as soon as possible to feel at ease; otherwise, it always felt like something was hanging over his head.

He heard that small pets were being sold near the main school gate recently, and at the old street, another market also had puppies for sale, so Old Man Lan planned to take a look. The dogs there were definitely not of any prized breeds, but Old Man Lan wasn’t too keen on those breeds anyway. The breed didn’t matter; as long as the dog could guard the house, that was enough. A friend of his had a small Pekingese that did a good job as a watchdog, better than some dogs that grew big bodies but not brains. So, it’s not about being expensive or big; as long as it could be a watchdog and prevent theft, it would satisfy Old Man Lan.

Buy a dog?

Zheng Tan hesitated for two seconds, but eventually jumped onto the vehicle. He still didn’t understand what buying a dog had to do with him, but he figured he might as well tag along for the excitement and see something new since there was nothing else to do at home.

Indeed, there were people selling small pets at the school entrance. During spring and summer, there were many selling small fish and turtles, but in fall and winter, animals like turtles hibernated, and students lost interest in them. Instead, the popularity rose for hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits, and little kittens.

Over the years, Zheng Tan had seen many abandoned small animals at the school, not to mention the numerous stray cats. Hamsters and guinea pigs that got loose were likely to get targeted by cats. At first, the students got them for novelty, but once the novelty wore off and they became a hassle, thoughts of abandonment crept in. Sometimes, when Zheng Tan would make his way to the artificial lake or nearby landscape lakes, he would see various small animals that had been thrown into the water and died. These occurrences happened every year, and no matter what measures the school took, the situation persisted.

If students were buying, the vendors were naturally happy to bring their “goods” to sell at the school entrance. Walking down the road by the school gate, Zheng Tan could see several sellers.

Zheng Tan followed Old Man Lan to a stall. They had hamsters and rabbits, and beside them, in a big cage, there were four puppies, looking no older than one to two months. They were fluffy, could walk, and seemed in good spirits, with fur that was a mix of light brown and grey.

Other sellers they had passed were also selling dogs, including Pekingese, golden retrievers, and not quite purebred Huskies. The students crowded around these stalls. Old Man Lan didn’t seem interested in any of them; this pet seller’s stall that they’d stopped at was the last one on this street.

The puppies looked very cute, and they were especially appealing to students, particularly the girls. However, in about a month, these puppies would begin to lose appeal as their native dog features became more prominent. Compared to breeds like Pekingese and golden retrievers, native dogs were far less popular among students.

Yet, when it came to guarding the house, Old Man Lan was very satisfied with native dogs; otherwise, he wouldn’t have stopped at this stall.

According to the vendor, he was selling them for a friend who lived on the outskirts of the city. The friend’s native dog had given birth and didn’t want to keep the puppies, nor sell them to a dog farm to be meat dogs, so he asked him to help sell them here.

Old Man Lan didn’t believe this. He’d heard the day before that selling dogs to be meat dogs at dog farms didn’t fetch a high price. At a farmer’s house, a batch of puppies could be bought for just a few to over ten yuan each. That’s why some people took the dogs to sell to students, where they could earn a few more ten-yuan bills.

“How come this dog is this color?” Old Man Lan asked, looking at the puppies in the cage.

The vendor, seeing Old Man Lan’s interest, quickly responded with a smile, “Don’t worry about the grey now, when they grow up, it’ll be different, definitely like their mother–a big yellow dog. Oh, I forgot to mention, the mother has erect ears, so these puppies will surely have erect ears as well when they’re grown, which makes them look spirited. Are you thinking of getting a dog to guard the house or just as a pet?”

“As a guard dog.” Old Man Lan didn’t care about the dogs’ ear shape, whether they were erect or folded didn’t matter; the important thing was their guarding ability. Though he couldn’t tell now if these puppies would be good at it, he had a feeling that they might not be too reliable.

“Then you’ve got it right! Don’t mention it, but for guard dogs, native breeds are the best. Those pedigree dogs might not be as effective. Didn’t you see the news a while back? There was a household that got robbed, and the dog even helped the thieves carry stuff. Just around where we live, there’s a household with a dog, bought for quite a few thousand yuan. But that dog, well, it barks like mad when someone knocks on other people’s doors, but when it’s their own door that’s being knocked, the dog doesn’t make a peep, now what do you make of that!”

As the vendor spoke energetically, Old Man Lan nodded along, yet he didn’t share his opinion. He knew that the behavior of certain dogs didn’t represent all; no matter the breed, there were good and bad dogs.

The vendor was still blabbering away, praising the dogs. Different customers had different demands, so naturally, he tailored his advertising slogans and recommendations accordingly. Students usually wanted something cute, easy to raise, and novel, but for older folks, practicality was definitely the key.

“All these dogs are raised by farmers for guarding and protecting against thieves, and each one is skilled at it. A friend of mine’s yellow dog even caught a few chicken thieves!” What the vendor didn’t finish saying was that the chickens raised by his friend had been bitten to death by the dog several times. That was something he would never disclose because if Old Man Lan also kept chickens at home, he could kiss this sale goodbye the moment he mentioned it. Therefore, it was fine to boast about catching thieves but better to leave chasing chickens out of the conversation.

Old Man Lan was somewhat tempted by the idea of a thief-catching dog, but which one to choose? Or should he buy several?

Since Mr. Lan didn’t really have any experience with this, he looked indecisively at the four pups in the cage that all looked alike and were about the same size. So, he shifted his gaze and asked the black cat sitting on the car and looking at the cage, “Heitan, what do you think, which one should we buy?”

The vendor hadn’t noticed earlier, but now, hearing what Old Man Lan said and craning his neck to look, he was surprised to see that the old man had brought a cat along while buying a dog! Who brings a cat to buy a dog?

“Hey, old timer, your cat is really well-raised,” the vendor commented.

Everyone likes compliments, and Old Man Lan nodded with pride, “Yeah, but it’s not mine.”

The vendor: “…” If it’s not yours, why are you showing off?

Zheng Tan didn’t bother with the vendor. As for picking a dog, how would he know how to pick? He didn’t even know how to choose cats, much less dogs. The four dogs looked exactly the same–all males with floppy little ears, looking pitiful and “hmph-hmph” at people, a sight that easily stirred sympathy.

The four pups in the cage, upon seeing Zheng Tan, crowded to the side facing him, looking very curious about this cat. Standing in front of the cage, Zheng Tan could clearly see how they looked.

The vendor noticed Old Man Lan’s dilemma and said, “Actually, any of these dogs will do. Raising a dog is like raising a child; the education it receives will determine how it turns out in the future–it’s all about the training.” What he meant was, just pick any one and raise it well. Letting a cat choose a dog? Ridiculous! He might as well close his eyes and pick one himself.

In fact, at this time of year, one could already tell a pup’s temperament. Zheng Tan had seen Xiao Guo and the others at the Pet Center test each kitten’s character while examining their health. Some cats would be docile when picked up, while others would struggle fiercely, scratching and biting.

However, Zheng Tan noticed that all four pups seemed to have about the same temperament–none were particularly rowdy nor particularly calm. No wonder Old Man Lan found it hard to make a decision.

“Heitan, go ahead and pick, whichever one you choose will be fine. If it turns out to be a bad choice, I won’t blame you; it’ll be my responsibility,” Old Man Lan said.

Actually, Old Man Lan thought that since all the dogs in the courtyard were quite good and Zheng Tan seemed to get along well with dogs, then his choice of dog couldn’t be too bad, right? It had to be more reliable than his own pick; considering he was practically a layman when it came to animals and only had an interest in plants.

Zheng Tan didn’t know what Old Man Lan was thinking, but when he heard him give the go-ahead, he lifted his paw and patted the cage. Right where he patted, a puppy that had been squeezing with its three siblings opened its mouth, seemingly finding it quite fun.

“That one then,” Old Man Lan said, pointing at that pup.

The vendor found it amusing inside. He thought the black cat was just waving its paw at the dogs inside the cage, not really making any particular choice. But, the customer had spoken, so he didn’t bother to explain further and happily opened the cage to pick up the indicated pup.

“Is this the one? It’s just been weaned, you can feed it some rice porridge and the like,” the vendor said as he handed the pup to Old Man Lan.

“Heitan, it’s this one, right?” Old Man Lan looked at Zheng Tan, and seeing that Zheng Tan had already returned to the car, he then turned to examine the pup in his hands. After checking that there were no signs of injury or illness, he asked for the price.

“I was planning to sell it for eighty to a hundred, but since you’re my first customer today, I’ll give you a discount–sixty,” the vendor offered.

“Sixty? Are you trying to scare people with that price? Just the other day I heard that three-month-old dogs were sold for 50 yuan. You’re asking a bit too much,” Old Man Lan argued. It wasn’t that he found it expensive; he was just telling the truth.

“Ah, but that’s not how it goes, elder. Isn’t the price also about seeing the quality of the dog? This dog is really good–it has inherited its parents’ talent for guarding and protecting. It’s not like those pampered dogs; many in the city have forgotten how to guard homes.”

In the end, the pup was sold for sixty yuan, but the vendor threw in a cage. The cage wasn’t very large, just big enough for two pups of this size, only the craftsmanship was somewhat inferior.

After placing the cage on the car, Old Man Lan told Zheng Tan, “Heitan, keep an eye on it for a moment, let’s go check out the vegetable market over there.”

Zheng Tan was surprised. Did this mean they were going to buy another one? If he had known, he would’ve just picked two from the start. (To be continued. If you like this novel, you are welcome to come to Qidian (NovelFire.net) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.NovelFire.net to read.)

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