Show and Tell

by Amy Shojai

  The largest, with black and white fur, sat calmly on the highest branch, and stared at Shadow before once more licking wet from his side. The other two females—he could tell even without a close-up sniff—were only half as big as the tuxedo.

  The mostly white cat couldn’t stop shivering and the heart-shaped spot on her chest quivered. She tried to snuggle closer to the heavily furred silver female, but the limb bent sharply and threatened to break. Shadow whimpered when the silver cat turned her flat face away, closed her big round eyes and slicked back tiny ears. She looked different than any other cats he’d seen, but smelled the same. Not even the cold wind could whisk away the fetid stink of fear, dumpster rot and cat pee.

  When the tree’s underwater anchor abruptly let go, Shadow crouched and braced himself against the thick upright limb upon which the cats perched, leery that the trio might pounce on a good-dog’s head. But the log sailed only a short distance before it thumped into a metal dumpster that had been tumbled about by the twisty black cloud. Shadow stiffened, sniffed cautiously, but detected no sign of the hated boy-thief, only stale garbage and animal stink.

  The black and white cat gathered haunches to leap from his limb to the dumpster rim, from there an easy catwalk to reach the muddy bank. Shadow cocked his head and narrowed his eyes. He could weave between upright branches along the length of the tree trunk, make his own jump to the shore, and race back to the barn to September. He whined with happy anticipation.

  A low, long “aroooo” sounded from within the depths of the box. Shadow’s ears flattened. Lips curled, remembering the encounter with the scar-faced dog.

  The male tuxedo froze, but the females had crept too far to stop. The branch bent, bowed and bounced over the open dumpster, inciting louder howls and frustrated claw scrabbles within.

  Shadow waited another heartbeat, but the dog didn’t leap out and the log didn’t swim any closer to the bank. So he levered himself upright and took slow, shaky steps while his stomach roiled.

  The tree dipped, and the overhead limb slammed the metal box with clanging blows. A bushy-tailed brown tabby exploded out of the dumpster to snag the end of the beckoning branch. His additional weight proved too much, and the branch broke, dumping the limb and all four cats inside with the unseen dog.

  Loss of the limb spun the trunk and spilled Shadow back into the cold water. Energy nearly spent, only the thought of September spurred him to flounder and hook one foreleg across the bobbing tree. His eyes half closed, as he floated helpless in the chill water, and yearned for home that seemed a world away.

  GET FIGHT OR FLIGHT HERE!

  FACT, FICTION & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  Thank you for reading SHOW AND TELL, and I hope you enjoyed this third book in the September Day series that began with LOST AND FOUND and continued with HIDE AND SEEK. I feel like I’ve won the lottery, to write about my passion and share these stories with the world. There never would have been a second book, and now a third one, without YOU adopting these books. (Can you see my virtual tail wag?)

  My writing pedigree tips heavily toward the nonfiction side of things, so when I began writing novels, the journalist on my shoulder continually whispered in my ear. Fiction by definition is, as September would say, made up crappiocca. But in order for readers to suspend their disbelief, there needs to be a scaffold of truth holding it together. My first fiction publisher Bob Mayer writes “factual fiction” and I love that concept so much, I’m stealing it. Below, you’ll find the Cliff’s Notes version of what’s real and what’s fantasy.

  As with the other books in the series, much of SHOW AND TELL is based on science, especially dog and cat behavior and learning theory, the benefits of service dogs, and the horror and reality of dogfights. Suspense and thriller novels by definition include mayhem, but as an animal advocate, I make a conscious choice to NOT show a pet’s death in my books. All bets are off with the human characters, though.

  I rely on a vast number of veterinarians, behaviorists, consultants, trainers, and pet-centric writers and rescue organizations that share their incredible resources and support to make my stories as believable as possible. Find out more information at IAABC.org, APDT.com, DWAA.org and CatWriters.com.

  FACT: The show-me game is real, created by trainer Kayce Cover as a vocabulary game used with a variety of animals, which my own dog loves to play (http://kaycecover.synalia.com)

  FICTION: Shadow’s viewpoint chapters are pure speculation, although I would love to able to read doggy minds. However, every attempt has been made to base all animal characters’ motivations and actions on what is known about canine and feline body language, scent discrimination, and the science behind the human-animal bond.

  FACT: Real-life pets inspire some of the pet characters in SHOW AND TELL. I’ve held a “Name That Dog/Name That Cat” contest for each of the three novels thus far in the series. This most recent contest resulted in 46 dog and 81 cat name nominations and a total of 16,930 votes.

  Patricia H. named Hercules, the Mastiff belonging to Kelvin, based on a dog she met during pet sitting. Debbie Glovatsky’s yellow tabby boy Waffles won the honor of being rescued by Willie and later saving the life of Lenny—Waffles is a blogging star known to have an extra-long tail and an adventurous mancat nature. Another cat blogging star, Kelly Hoffman’s feline alter ego Boris Kitty (a kitty from da hood) shines in the “Tarzan cat” scenes and, I’m told, is also a climber, leaper, shoulder-percher extraordinaire. Karyl Cunningham suggested the name Fuzzit for BeeBo’s rescue kitten in honor of her 18-year-old cat Anubis, nicknamed Fuzzit, a real-life friend of Simba, also mentioned in the story. For BeeBo’s dogs, Lynette George suggested Teddy, a beloved protective red Pit Bull from her childhood, and Kristi Brashier nominated Dot, a glamour girl rescued Pit Bull who is also a diabetes alert service dog. Finally, Theresa Littlefield’s squirrel-fanatic dog Kinsler won the honor to be Willie’s run away dog. Congratulations and THANK YOU to all the winners. I think they all deserve treats. Maybe even bacon!

  FACT: Therapy dogs can work wonders when partnered with autistic individuals. Emotional Support Animals (ESA) also partner with a variety of people, from children to adults, including those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Only dogs and guide horses for the blind can be service animals trained to perform a specific function for their human partner, from becoming the ears for the deaf, eyes for the blind, support for other-abled and alert animals for health and physically challenged individuals. Learn about the differences and the benefits of pet-people partnerships at http://petpartners.org. You can also find out about “fake” credentialing services that hurt legitimate partnerships in this blog post: http://amyshojai.com/fake-service-dog-credentials/

  FACT: Dogfights are a sad reality in much of the world. All of the paraphernalia described, from break sticks to the cat gin, spring poles to rape stands, are real. It’s also true that law enforcement now has veterinary forensic specialists available—think of it as animal CSI—to nail these bad actors. The flood in SHOW AND TELL would be problematic but tests from the living dogs or any remains found could help find out a great deal. Animal fighting is already a federal crime and dog fighting is a felony in all 50 states. That's due in part to the relationship between the fighting events and illegal gambling, guns and drugs. Here in Texas, it's still quite a problem where sometimes whole families attend including little kids. Children brought up in the culture of dogfights consider them normal, and perpetuate the horror. To combat the crime of dogfights, the Missouri Humane Society, the ASPCA, the Louisiana SPCA, and the UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory collaborated to establish the first ever database. Find out more about Canine CODIS here:

  http://www.vgl.ucdavis.edu/forensics/CANINECODIS.php

  FACT: Pit Bulls are not inherently “evil” or “aggressive.” Because of their heritage, these dogs have an increased propensity for dog-on-dog aggression, as do many other terrier breeds. Pit Bulls do not bite people more readily than other breeds. Sadly, t
hat statistical distinction goes to German Shepherds. (Don’t tell Shadow!) All dogs bite, and every breed has challenges, so be educated and prepared for whatever animal friend steals your heart.

  FACT: Kinsler’s resuscitation accurately depicts nose-to-mouth rescue breathing. The acupuncture “alarm point” does work, and has been known to resuscitate stillborn puppies and kittens up to twenty minutes after pronounced dead.

  FACT: The porcelain cap from Lenny’s tooth used to break the van window theoretically could work. Windows designed to withstand blunt force, like car windows, can break a household knife. Any sharp sudden strike with the right force and location could cause the glass to shatter. I just liked the idea of using the tooth, after seeing this YouTube video, enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llu-ckEe5cQ

  FACT: According to the CDC and others, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) affects about one percent of the world population, and about one in 68 children. The challenges facing these children and their families vary from mild to severe, and can prove devastating to those who love them. Some of these gifted individuals rise far above their challenges (think of Temple Grandin and Albert Einstein for example). These types of characters make great fodder for fiction authors, even if “twice exceptional” or 2e children may not be the average. After putting Steven, Tracy, Lenny and their parents through hell in the first book LOST AND FOUND, it seemed only fair to turn SHOW AND TELL over to them for their heroics to shine through. Refer to these resources for more information on ASD: http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html http://psychcentral.com/lib/autistic-and-gifted-supporting-the-twice-exceptional-child/

  FICTION: I created the fictional drug Damenia supposedly borrowed from an Alzheimer’s treatment. However, drugs for dementia and psychotropic drugs offer mixed results when treating autism. Off-label drug use in children is controversial but does happen, particularly with informed consent of parents. At times, the benefits are enormous and other times potentially devastating. Some psychotropic drugs cause psychosis, and oftentimes, abrupt withdrawal from a drug protocol causes unexpected consequences. However, there is no evidence to support the notion that withdrawal from an approved ASD treatment would cause any of the outcomes described in my thrillers. I made it all up.

  FACT: Court cases have convicted people based on animal evidence, such as Fuzzit’s torn claw embedded in Sunny’s neck, or cat hair found on the defendant. Actually, I wanted to use cat hair DNA evidence, but after Sunny spent so much time in the water, that idea didn’t wash. Literally.

  FACT: Both dumpsters and straw bales float. I checked.

  FACT: This book would not have happened without an incredible support team of friends, family and accomplished colleagues. Cool Gus Publishing, Jennifer Talty and Bob Mayer made these thrillers with “dog viewpoint” a reality when many in the publishing industry howled at the notion. Special thanks to my first readers Kristi Brashier, Carol Shenold and Frank Steele for your eagle eyes, spot-on comments and unflagging encouragement and support. Wags and purrs to my Triple-A Team (Amy’s Audacious Allies) for all your help sharing the word about all my books. Youse guyz rock!

  I continued to be indebted to the International Thriller Writers organization, which launched my fiction career by welcoming me into the Debut Authors Program. Wow, just look, now I have three books in a series! The authors, readers and industry mavens who make up this organization are some of the most generous and supportive people I have ever met. Long live the bunny slippers with teeth (and the rhinestone #1-Bitch Pin).

  Finally, I am grateful to all the cats and dogs I’ve met over the years who have shared my heart and oftentimes my pillow. Nine year old Magical-Dawg (the inspiration for Shadow) and nineteen-year-old Seren-Kitty, along with newcomer Karma-Kat inspire me daily.

  I never would have been a reader and now a writer if not for my fantastic parents who instilled in me a love of the written word, and never looked askance when my stuffed animals and invisible wolf friend told fantastical stories. And of course, my deepest thanks to my husband Mahmoud, who continues to support my writing passion, even when he doesn’t always understand it.

  I love hearing from you! Please drop me a line at my blog https://AmyShojai.com or my website https://shojai.com where you can subscribe to my PET PEEVES newsletter (and maybe win some pet books!). Follow me on twitter @amyshojai and like me on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/amyshojai.cabc

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Amy Shojai is a certified animal behavior consultant, and the award-winning author of more than 30 bestselling pet books that cover furry babies to old fogies, first aid to natural healing, and behavior/training to Chicken Soupicity. She has been featured as an expert in hundreds of print venues including The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Reader’s Digest, and Family Circle, as well as television networks such as CNN, and Animal Planet’s DOGS 101 and CATS 101. Amy brings her unique pet-centric viewpoint to public appearances. She is also a playwright and co-author of STRAYS, THE MUSICAL and the author of the critically acclaimed September Day pet-centric thriller series. Stay up to date with new books and appearances by subscribing to Amy’s Pets Peeves newsletter at www.SHOJAI.com.

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