The Dog of El Morro

The islet next to Taboga, known as El Morro, was used years ago as a shipyard, giving work to several families on the island. Some of them built homes on the hillside of the small island to stay close to the work site.

One of these families, made up of a couple and a dog, settled into a small house on the island’s hillside. One night, a great rock broke loose and slid down over the house, killing the couple but leaving the dog alive. The islanders took the dog in and brought it to live with another family, but the sad dog kept returning to its little house, looking for its owners; the animal fell into a depression and died a few months later.

Even now, late at night, you can still hear the dog’s heartbreaking howl from La Restinga, crying for its lost owners.

I read this story in a book about Taboga and adapted it from memory, because as much as I’ve searched, I can’t find the book anymore.