Patch – The One Who Walked with Robert E. Howard

Robert E. Howard was well-known for his affection for animals, demonstrating kindness towards stray cats, dogs, and even a starving horse. At the time of his passing, 13 stray cats frequently visited his residence. Tevis Clyde Smith, Robert’s closest friend, expanded upon his thoughts on animals in Pecan Valley Days:

“Humanity will probably destroy itself,” he said on one occasion. “Oh well, in a case of that kind, the animals will be able to enjoy themselves. That’s something. They deserve far more than they get. Take Patch here,” he added facetiously, but with a deeper meaning than his tone conveyed, as he scratched his old dog’s back: “He’s been around for years, and not once has he ever criticized me. He never has so much as implied that he is better than I am, and he never has corrected me about my manners. He doesn’t know anything about man’s inhumanity to man. Yes,” he said, rather softly, “It’d leave a good world for the animals.” (p.47)

Robert and Patch playing. Photo from Pecan Valley Days by Tevis Clyde Smith. Smith probably also was the photographer. The photo was later owned by Smith’s nephew, Roy Barkley.

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Patch or Patches¹In the article Robert E. Howard as a boy Mrs. T. A. Burns say that Robert called his dog “Patches”, but both in the quote from Tevis Clyde Smith in Pecan Valley Days and in the letter Dr. Isaac M. Howard wrote to E. Hoffmann Price he is called “Patch”. , as mentioned in the quote above by Clyde Smith, was Howard’s beloved dog. Not merely a pet, but rather his unwavering and cherished companion throughout his childhood, teenage years, and early twenties. Furthermore, Patch served as a muse for many of Robert’s stories later in life, serving as a source of inspiration and fond memories.

According to Robert’s father, Dr. Isaac M. Howard, and judging from the few photographs that exist, Patch was a mixed breed of half border collie and half Walker. The Howard family bible records Patch’s birth as Christmas 1917²From Robert E. Howard’s uncle’s family bible. They lived near Waco at the time. The dates appear to have been put by one of the uncle’s children according to Rob Roehm.. This indicates that the dog was likely a gift from Howard’s parents to Robert on his twelfth birthday in 1918. There are no sources proving this as a fact, but the timeframe would fit. More importantly, this different date contradicts with what others have written³In A man and his dog Patrice Louinet places the time of both birth and death of Patch one or two years earlier. Also, in Mark Finn’s biography Blood & Thunder, it states that Robert got Patch in 2016 and that Howard was devastated due to Patch’s death indicating that Patch died in the late 1928., claiming that Robert was about ten years old when he got Patch. Regardless, Robert raised Patch from the time he was a puppy, and the two were inseparable companions. Patch was fed from the table and would sit by Robert’s chair as he ate. Before Robert helped himself to food, he would make sure to feed Patch first. For a dozen years, they had their meals together.

In a letter to E. Hoffmann Price on June 21, 1944, Doctor Isaac M. Howard mentions Robert’s strong bond with Patch, noticing that “His [Robert’s] association was so close with this dog until the dog seemed to develop a perfectly human understanding of not only Robert, but Robert’s mother and myself.” (The Collected Letters of Doctor Isaac M. Howard, p. 204).

Despite Patch’s significance to Robert, there is scarcely any information available about him. However, there is a noteworthy incident involving Robert, Patch, and Burkett’s postmistress Mrs. Elsie Burns⁴Hood Country Texas Genealogical Society, obituary of Thomas Allen Burns. He was the husband of Elsie Burns who used the name Mrs. T. A. Burns when she wrote she wrote articles for Coleman Democrat-Voice and Cross Plains Review., which was documented in a newspaper article in the Cross Plains Review approximately one month after Robert’s passing in June 1936⁵Robert E. Howard as a boy, Cross Plains Review, July 10, 1936, by Mrs. T. A. Burns. Thomas Allen Burns was the husband of Elsie Burns and she used the name Mrs. T. A. Burns when she wrote her articles.:

In the early morning of spring of 1918, while taking a walk, Mrs. Burns had an encounter with a big black and white dog wearing a collar. The friendly look in the dog’s eyes reassured her that it wasn’t dangerous. Soon after, she heard someone calling out “Come Patches, come Patches”. Looking up, she saw a young boy crossing a fence, while Patches was investigating a small cave under a large rock. The boy politely introduced himself:

Robert’s mother, Hester Jane Ervin Howard with Patch outside the Howard home in Cross Plains, Texas, ca. 1924.

“I’m Robert Howard. I’m sorry if we frightened you; Patches and I are out for our morning stroll. We like to come here where there are big rocks and caves so we can play ‘make believe.’ Some day I’m going to be an author and write stories about pirates and maybe cannibals.

Would you like to read them?”

After Mrs. Burns expressed her interest in reading Robert’s stories, he called on Patch and they disappeared behind the nearby hill.

The Howard family moved from Cross Cut to Burkett. It’s hard to place the exact date, but according to research by Rob Roehm, who established a timeframe based on records he found at the Coleman County Courthouse, the earliest day when Doctor Howard can be placed in Burkett is April 7th, 1918. This might be around the time of the above-mentioned encounter with Mrs. Burns.

Sometime later the same year, the Howard family moved to a different house and became neighbors with Mrs. Burns, who observed Robert and Patch playing together every day. Mrs. Burns mentioned that Robert had a pet raccoon, whom Patch had accepted as part of the family, and she recalled many fun times they had together. She praised Robert’s kindness and consideration for his pets. In the end, this mischievous raccoon had to be returned to its native home in Pecan Bayou⁶Pecan Bayou is a slow-moving stream in Callahan County, Texas. The stream runs through Brownwood on its way from headwaters on the Callahan Divide to join the Colorado River in Mills County.

Eventually, every good thing comes to an end. When Pat was 12 years old, he fell ill, and Robert realized it was time to bid farewell to his friend. Dr. Howard documented this heartbreaking experience⁷The Collected Letters of Doctor Isaac M. Howard by The Robert E. Howard Foundation:

“(…) when the dog was 12 years old, he sickened to die. Robert knew his dog was going to die. He packed his grip, opened the gate, walked out, and said, “Mama, I am going.” He went to Brownwood [and] stayed until his dog died, which was two or three days. But each morning he phoned and asked his mother if Patch (that was the dog’s name) was still alive; finally on the third or fourth morning, his mother told him she thought the Patch dog would not last longer than 12 o’clock. He always spoke thus: “Mama, how are [you?”] When his mother would reply, he would say: “How is Patch?” After the fourth day when his mother told him the dog was going, he never inquired any more; he knew the dog would soon die. Therefore he never spoke of him again.” (p. 206)

Doctor Howard buried Patch in the back lot. It was plowed deeply, and a big harrow was used to destroy every trace of the grave. This was done to spare Robert the pain of seeing the grave and to protect him from anything depressing.

Patch probably died in 1929 when Robert was in his early mid-twenties. The loss of Patch was a painful experience for him, and he rarely spoke of him in his letters or autobiographical writings.

Despite Patch’s passing, Robert’s strong bond with his dog was never forgotten. In fact, it could be argued that Robert incorporated his companionship with Patch in several stories he wrote and sold to various pulp magazines. For instance, in the Steve Costigan series, the protagonist’s faithful sidekick is his dog Mike, who was undoubtedly inspired by Robert’s former dog.

A picture of Robert E. Howard and his dog, Patch. Taken in front of his home in Cross Plains. Date unknown. Picture provided by Patrice Louinet.

Additionally, in the short story “Beyond the Black Border” featuring the character of Balthus, who is essentially a thinly disguised version of himself, Robert not only resurrected Patch back to life through Balthus’ dog Slasher but also gave them a glorious, heroic death. This is particularly noteworthy because in reality, Robert was unable to be with Patch when he passed away. There is no record of whether Robert ever regretted not having been with Patch in his final moments. But in “Beyond the Black River,” Balthus stays with Slasher until the very end, and both meet their heroic demise together.

The reason why Robert E. Howard never got another dog after Patch’s death remains unknown. It’s possible that he couldn’t bear the pain of losing another animal or that Robert simply didn’t have the time to devote to a new pet. However, since there are no explicit statements on the matter available, either from Howard or other reliable sources, any speculation about his reasons is just that – speculation.