Friday, February 06, 2009

Sick As A Dog, Part II

I made it to the doctor. I called after I got into work. The receptionist took my name and number and said my doctor would call me back. Instead I got a call back from the receptionist saying there was a cancellation. So I got in to see the doctor today.

He said I probably have the Norwalk virus. I should keep doing what I've been doing which is eating very bland food, keep drinking liquids and keep taking my Pepto-Bismol. He gave me prescription to use only if I don't get better by Sunday. I really hope I'm on the mend.

Now for where Sick as a dog came from. Here's what I found out:

As with most of these word/phrase origins, it's very hard to track down an exact source. "Sick as a dog," meaning "very sick," dates back to at least 1705. It's the oldest "sick as a _____" on record, though various animals (e.g. cats, rats and horses) have filled in the blank throughout history.

The general consensus is that:

(a) When dogs are sick, they're noticeably different from when they are healthy. If a cat is sick, it lies around the house all day. If a cat is healthy... it lies around the house all day. But a sick dog will not jump, lick, sniff and play like a healthy dog. When a dog is sick, you notice. Thus, "sick as a dog" makes sense to anyone who has a dog; "sick as a goldfish" probably doesn't mean much to anyone.

(b) Dogs are the only animal that most people are likely to ever see vomit (other than cats coughing up hairballs). The phrase "sick as a dog" probably originated in Britain. While "being sick" in North America can mean a number of things (having a cold, the flu, a stomachache), in Britain it usually means vomiting. If you are so sick that you are vomiting, you might equate yourself with a sick (i.e. vomiting) dog.

(c) We simply like to use dogs in phrases: dog-tired, dog-eared, go to the dogs, she's a dog... Dogs are the animals people are most familiar with so they pop up in a lot of idioms.


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2 comments:

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