Marc P Valdez

Dog-Walking Stories Marc P Valdez

Despite their wide variety of sizes and temperaments, all dogs love to walk. This book is about walks with two dogs: Sparky (who I owned for a long time, from 1994 to 2009) and Bella (who I owned for a short time, from 2015-2016, although I already knew her by 2008). Sparky and Bella had different temperaments, but they both loved to walk. These walks usually occurred at night, often after midnight, when traffic on busy streets became sparse and the people of the Sacramento underworld emerged. Thus, we'd often see unusual sights on the streets. We'd see homeless people bedding down for the night, or acting out in strange ways. We'd stop and chat with them sometimes too. We'd see nocturnal animals foraging for food, and dozens of other small wonders too. Walking dogs proved to be a perfect doorway into the Sacramento demimonde. That's what this book is about.