Sick as a Dog

I sometimes wonder about how humans come up with some of these strange expressions. Now, I've been fortunate enough in my seven years on this earth to not have been very sick. From time to time, I have unexplained short wheezing-like spells. When it first happened when I was younger, my humans thought it may be caused by my pulling during walking. Apparently beagles have weak tracheas, so upon the vet's recommendation, they used a harness for my walks instead. However, it continues to occur occassionally, usually when I'm resting, with each bout lasting for a couple of minutes and then I'm fine. My humans have taken me to the vet who suspects it may be due to excessive flap or excessive tissue in my nose. They've also done research on the internet and discovered that this problem is common among beagles.

Having said that, my bouts of wheezing spells still doesn't explain this dog phrase "Sick as a Dog" which is generally understood to mean "very ill". After all, dogs are generally healthy. It's true that each dog breed has predispositions to certain health problems, but I doubt that we are "sicker" than other types of animals on this planet.

This explanation was posted on a Kid's Health website - "If you've ever been very sick, you may have used this expression. Because dogs eat just about anything they find, they often get sick. So it's fitting to describe someone who is not feeling well as being "sick as a dog."

Now this sounds fairly logical, especially if you're a beagle. My mum and dad can testify to that. They know that when they walk me, they have to be super vigilant as I have been known to be able to sniff out buried bones and food from miles aways (must be the same excessive tissues that trigger the wheezing). Before you can say "Geronimo", I would have chomped down the food, much to my humans's disgust since most of the food found on the street and parks aren't really edible from a human perspective. My list includes discarded bread, bones, rice and even a corn cob (I didn't really eat it - just carried it in my mouth). From time to time, they've tried to open my mouth to try to remove the offending food but not often successful. Hah! The beagle outsmarts them!

So, with that, I am proud to accept the award that the 2 Mighty Beans bestowed on me last month:


"When accepting this award, you must blog about the food you have stolen when your humans were not watching. If you have never stolen any food, you must have been a really good pup! You can accept this yummy tray of cookies as your reward! Next add the logo of this award to your blog (optional), then nominate at least 5 other furry blogs and let them know by leaving a message on their blogs."

Since I am so late in posting this award and quite a few of you already have this award, I am leaving this award open for any dog blogger who have not received this and would like to share their tale of stolen food.

Ain't Nothing But a Hound Dog

Three cheers to Martha and Bailey, the two basset hounds who were the first to correctly guess the title of the song by Elvis Presley, the King of Rock and Roll! Well done to the rest of the musical bloggers who also hit the spot with their guesses. Martha & Bailey wins the Dog Series award.



Technically, "Ain't Nothing But a Hound Dog" isn't really a doggie phrase or an idiom. It's just a song written in 1952 by a couple of kids on the back of a paper bag. If you take a look at the nonsensical lyrics below, you can tell that it was written by kids on the back of a paper bag!

You ain't nothin' but a hound dog
Cryin' all the time
You ain't nothin' but a hound dog
Cryin' all the time
Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit
And you ain't no friend of mine

The song was first sung by Wille Mae "Big Mama" Thornton who had the band bark and howl like hound dogs at the end of the song. This song was later made popular by Elvis Presley in 1956. While Mr Presley didn't end the song with howling (I took some poetic licence with the rhyming. Sorry, Oorvi), he did add his signature "pelvic gyrations". The Hound Dog sold over 4 million copies in the US and spent a record 11 weeks at #1. Not bad for a song about a hound dog!

Key West Collies also beat me to another dog song "Who Let the Dogs Out" released by the Baha Men in 2000. It reached #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US and #2 on the UK Singles Chart. The catchy chorus essentially comprise of repeats of:

"Who let the dogs out?
Who, who, who, who? who?"

Strangely, this song became a sports anthem at stadiums and arenas worldwide. Mum remembers attending a rugby match a few years back where this song was played and enthusiastically chanted by the fans. I guess it added to the atmosphere and excitement of the game.

So there you have it, two fun nonsensical dog songs which achieved fame and glory. Hmm...I wonder if we dogs should charge them royalty?