SUNNYVIEW TALES
Nathan and his dog Shep
The Sunnyview farmhouse as I remember it as a child.
My dad had a favorite dog he named Shep. He loved Shep, but unfortunately, he was a bit too defensive around the Sunnyview store, threatening customers. Also, my mother did not much like dogs.
After a while Nathan realized that he had to do something, he could not have an aggressive dog at the store, scaring the clientele. He asked his nephew William Ivan Porter (son of his sister Irene) to take the dog to his farm at Bethel, and give him a home
there. Shep found his way back to Sunnyview, not once but several times, a distance of about 9 miles. They said he would swim across the Licking River, because he was afraid of the old covered bridge.
Finally, Ivan kept him tied up until he acclimated to his new home. The dog then stayed with Ivan, but one day Shep got a piece of bone stuck in his throat, and Ivan was unable to remove it, the dog being too fearful to allow him to work. Ivan called Nathan who then came to the farm, and carefully removed the bone.
Shep lived with Ivan and his family for many years, but Nathan missed him. I remember as a child my dad talking fondly about his dog Shep.
