The Black Dog came in the night He came in a cloud he was the cloud A huge cloud that covered the city And the city the air above the city became even darker For just a while Then the black cloud got smaller and smaller Until it was a small cloud that sank lower to the ground and its shape became doglike and the doglike shape became a dog The Black Dog of Depression had invaded the city of Dublin But no one noticed No humans noticed But the animals did The city’s pets tried to warn their owners but the humans weren’t listening listening A bark was a bark and a meow was just a meow The Black Dog had arrived He crept through the city’s streets He slid along the shadows and made no noise at all He slid and crept and sneaked into houses and flats wherever he could find the humans The city’s dogs hated what was happening 1
Dublin loved dogs And the city’s dogs knew they were lucky All this food and water said a dog called Sadie Oh my God And all I have to do like is wag my tail and remember to pee and like poo in the garden I forget sometimes said a second dog called Chester Me too like said Sadie The only thing I have to do said Chester is pretend I’m happy when my owner comes home from work Do you have to pretend Sadie asked Sometimes said Chester Oh my God said Sadie I never do Aren’t you great said Chester a bit sarcastically Dogs especially Dublin dogs can be very sarcastic Just listen very carefully to the barks especially early in the morning The dogs knew There was only one way to stop the Black Dog of Depression But all they could do was watch as the Black Dog started to prowl in the night and move in closer to the humans It was horrible to see how he could become part of the air and slide into houses How he could change the mood kill laughter and wipe smiles from faces that had been smiling for years How he could change sleep from a pleasant dream into a nightmare The two dogs Chester and Sadie lived very near each other They were almost next-door neighbors There was only one house between theirs and it belonged to a man called Ben Kelly They both liked Ben He didn’t have a dog of his own but he always treated them well whenever he saw them going for a walk or barking at him from inside their houses They both liked sitting on the backs of the couches in their front rooms Oh my God said Sadie Do you do that as well I do yeah said Chester 2
That’s like amazing said Sadie Passes the time Chester shrugged Ben lived alone but there were always people coming and going There was always music and laughter And there were two children that the dogs liked Two kids who used to come to Ben’s house They called him Uncle Ben What’s an uncle Sadie asked Chester Don’t know Chester admitted But I think it might have something to do with chips Chips Yeah said Chester He buys them chips whenever they come to the house The children a boy and a girl loved their Uncle Ben And it was clear Ben loved them But then the Black Dog slid into Ben’s house and hundreds thousands of other houses He came at night hiding in the darkness Dogs and most other animals love the nighttime It’s the time when they can be themselves when they can do most of their barking and howling They’re not expected to wag their tails forever or to fetch sticks and stupid plastic toys People go to bed and their pets can secretly relax It’s a magic time when the daylight rules wobble and the humans don’t notice things as much Unusual events seem normal or don’t get noticed Two talking dogs might actually be two human voices carried in the wind A black dog-shaped shadow creeping up the stairs is probably the moon behind the tree outside in the front garden It made the city’s animals angry that the Black Dog used the night to spread his poison But they knew There was nothing that Sadie or Chester or any of the city’s other dogs and pets could do to stop him Only the city’s kids could do that 4
