In Memory of Buddy, 1999-2009

Thank you to everyone for your incredibly kind comments on my blog, and the friends who called & sent text messages.  Also a huge thank you to my mom and brother, two of Buddy's favorite people, for coming on Friday night to say goodbye to him.  My brother lives over 1 1/2 hours away, and I will be forever grateful to him for driving here to make my dog's last moments special.

Buddy passed away on Saturday afternoon.  It was the best ending possible.  I wanted him to be able to die here at home rather than being euthanized in the veterinary clinic.  We were granted that wish.  We spent the past two days keeping him comfortable, telling him how much he was loved, and that he was free to let go. 

He did let go, in the spot of his choosing, while the children were napping.  My husband and I were by his side the whole time, comforting him in his final moments.  I truly believe he was in no pain until the very last minute, and for that I am incredibly thankful.  I am so very grateful that we were able to be with him!

We buried him in our backyard so that he will always be at his home.

I wanted to use this opportunity to give thanks and remembrance to a most loyal, dependable, loving dog.

Thank you for bringing such joy into our lives when we brought you home as a puppy. You were like a first child to us, as is the case for many young married people who own a pet before having children.  You were such a fun-loving dog, full of non-stop energy and rambunctiousness.  There was never a dull moment.

Thank you for watching over my sons.  I remember you laying outside each of their bedroom doors or on the floor next to their crib, protecting and watching over them always.

Thank you for protecting us.  You never let a person come within 50 yards of our house without letting us know.  You were very cautious when a stranger entered.  Thank you.

I'm sorry the past few years haven't been the happiest for you.  I know you didn't enjoy being tortured by little boys, the sound of their high-pitched voices made you screech, and you got brushed to the side a lot by the adults.

I hope, if nothing else, that you knew how much you were loved.  I am so grateful you were a part of our lives.

Buddy & I, winter 2003

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Our family dog is deathly ill

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This will not be a positive, upbeat post.  Sorry.  :-(

Our dog is very, very sick.  All week I have been watching him as he has been having "accidents" in the house. Then, yesterday, he didn't come downstairs in the morning - the first time in his life he wasn't among us causing chaos at breakfast time.  When he refused food and water and seemed lethargic, I took him to the vet.

What do you do when you are told your family pet is dying?  His liver is failing, and as a result his belly is bloated and full of fluid - so much fluid that his organs are so squished inside him.  Looking at the X-Rays brought tears to my eyes, but I had driven him to the vet alone, so I had to wait until later to cry the tears.  I didn't need to kill us both on the drive home by bawling.

Buddy came into our lives as a tiny puppy.  He was born in December 1999 and abandoned.  He ended up at the Humane Society, which is where we adopted him.

This dog survived being hit by a car, run over by our boat on the river (my husband reminded me of this yesterday, and how I had jumped in to save him), and has survived 3 young boys who terrorized him every day.  It's hard to believe that something like this will take his life.

He's become so weak he can no longer jump up onto the couch, so we lifted him onto the chair right next to me now in my craft/office room.  The vet recommended that we euthanize him today.  While I initially considered it, our oldest son is in school now and I want him to have the chance to say goodbye.  I think instead, I may opt for an IV today to get some fluids in his dehydrated body.  This may help him make it through the weekend and give us all a chance to say goodbye.

I have been reading a lot about canine liver disease this morning, and we are doing all we can to encourage him to eat (I cooked a special recommended meal, and I was shocked, he actually ate it and has yet to throw it up), and we are just trying to keep him comfortable and let him know how much he is loved.  We don't believe he is in pain.  He is taking medication, but the vet believes that he may be too far gone for it to work.

It's hard to say goodbye to a beloved family pet who has been with you for 10 years.

I hope we can give him a loving weekend.

Thanks for listening.


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Boy meets dog

Our dog is getting old.
He's over 9 years old now and getting more gray by the day.
He's a Schipperke mix, and apparently they're known to be pretty uptight little dogs. Don't tell him that, though. He thinks he's a big, tough, huge dog meant to protect us all (which he has and can do).
But he doesn't like kids all that much.
Thankfully, now that our oldest is now 6, he's kinder to the dog.
They're slowly developing a friendship.
It's nice.
He's even big enough now to hold Buddy's leash on a walk. Score one for the parents!