slickem
08-08-2006, 03:09 PM
We had to put our beloved black lab down on July 5th. Lady was 16 years old. We got her from our son when she was 13. They bought a new home and did not have a fence, so they let us keep her until they could get one installed. Needless to say, she stole our hearts. (I still cannot type this without tears in my eyes. ) She never went back home. She lived with us the rest of her life & loved every minute of it. The kids knew how much we loved her & told us we spoiled her so much they could not take her back. They bought a rambunctious Cocker Spaniel (Buster) that loves everybody.
Anyway,
The family was on vacation this week. We spent the week in Myrtle Beach. We came back on Thursday. The kids were going shopping on Friday (Tax free weekend in NC). They asked us to pick up Buster from our vet, where he was boarded for the week. I was looking forward to playing with Buster, but the kids decided to pick him up before they went shopping.
Time for a little background here. There is a man and woman in Wilson, NC (where we live), who love dogs. The have founded a rescue shelter called For the Love of Dogs. They accept any & all dogs that have been abandoned or turned in because people do not want them any more. They will keep them until someone adopts them, or keep them forever.
Since Buster was not coming to visit, I asked my wife if we could go see the dogs at this shelter. Actually, I told her that if I could not play with their dog, I would go get my own. (I didn’t think she would go, because she was so upset at having to put Lady down.) She said we will go look, but that was all. We drove up to this place & the owner met us at our Ridgeline. He introduced himself and asked what we were there for. I told him our story of Lady & the loss we had suffered. He told us he understood that they had just lost one of their dogs & there was only one way to ease the pain. He asked us to come in and see his babies. We followed him in and they had what I guess was 75 dogs in their kennels. Each one, he called by name. We walked through one time & looked at every dog. There were so many, it was very confusing. We met a few, that Max let out for us to play with. All were very lovable & excited to see us. Judy & I decided to walk back through the shelter alone & look at the dogs again. We found this mixed lab called Midnight. Judy formed an instant bond with this dog. Max put her on a leash and told us to walk around the property with her. Of course, being outside the kennels, she found all new smells and spent her time sniffing everything. We walked her until the 98+ degrees got to us all. We took her back inside and asked to see her file. Max told us she is a mixed lab between 1-1/2 and 2 years old that they have had since February. Someone found her & gave her to Max to rescue. That is all the history we have on this dog.
Max offered to let us take Midnight home for a 7 day trial. I was very surprised when Judy agreed to do this. She was so excited about taking Midnight home. So, we loaded her up in the Ridgeline (Thank you Honda for the folding back seats) and brought her home.
A little more background. I have a room off of our garage, which serves and my office, playroom, & my personal doghouse. I have a computer, stereo, 2 TV’s and all my “manly” decorations in this room. I have a heater & air conditioner in this room that Judy does not want me to use very often. A couple of years ago, when it got cold, we let Lady sleep in this room. She immediately took over this room as hers. For the next 2 years, she never left this room, except to go out and use the bathroom or hang out with us on the patio. She had in made. 75 degrees in the summer and winter.
On the way home, the first thing I told Judy was that this dog would not live in this room! We get home & the first thing Midnight does is drag Judy across the backseat of the Ridgeline as she is ready to get out of the truck. Judy has this big bruise on her backside. She tells Midnight that this is not the way to start out. I made sure Judy was not hurt too bad, but it was really funny (after the fact). We let Midnight in our fenced in backyard & she checks the place out. Not to friendly, but not too shy either. We watch her & of course Judy decides it too hot outside for Midnight to stay in the backyard. I tell her, that we will let her in my “room” until it cools off. I try to get her to come in the room & she wants no part of it. Finally, we put her back on the lease and “drag” her into the room. She is very scared because she thinks it’s another cage. She finally calms down & decides it’s not too bad. We are with her, rubbing her when she lets us & she lies down & goes to sleep. We let her sleep awhile & then she wakes up. We decide that she has cooled down & can go back outside. She darts out the door like she never wants to go back again. We spend another ½ hour outside & I decide to go in “MY ROOM” and watch TV. You guessed it, she beat me back in the door. (I said she was a mixed breed, not dumb.) So I guess I have lost my room again. She spent the night in the room until 4:00 AM when Judy woke up to “check on her.” Max’s wife, Della, called us Friday night to check on us & Midnight. We gave her an update & she told us she would call again Sunday. By now, she owns us. Saturday was a long day. We spent the morning doing yard work. Midnight sat in the garage while I cut the grass. She didn’t like the sound of the lawnmower. Saturday afternoon, we loaded her in the Ridgeline & took her to the PetSmart store in a neighboring town. $100 later we left with a new collar, leash, bed & some toys. Sunday was a good day. She got friendlier by the minute. The kids came over & she spent the afternoon playing with us.
Monday night, we signed the adoption papers and made Midnight officially ours. Today, we took her to our vet & she got a clean checkup. She learned how to get in & out of the Ridgeline by herself this afternoon.
Max was right. There is only one way to replace the hurt. I still miss Lady but watching thid dog learn to trust us and to love us is great.
Anyway,
The family was on vacation this week. We spent the week in Myrtle Beach. We came back on Thursday. The kids were going shopping on Friday (Tax free weekend in NC). They asked us to pick up Buster from our vet, where he was boarded for the week. I was looking forward to playing with Buster, but the kids decided to pick him up before they went shopping.
Time for a little background here. There is a man and woman in Wilson, NC (where we live), who love dogs. The have founded a rescue shelter called For the Love of Dogs. They accept any & all dogs that have been abandoned or turned in because people do not want them any more. They will keep them until someone adopts them, or keep them forever.
Since Buster was not coming to visit, I asked my wife if we could go see the dogs at this shelter. Actually, I told her that if I could not play with their dog, I would go get my own. (I didn’t think she would go, because she was so upset at having to put Lady down.) She said we will go look, but that was all. We drove up to this place & the owner met us at our Ridgeline. He introduced himself and asked what we were there for. I told him our story of Lady & the loss we had suffered. He told us he understood that they had just lost one of their dogs & there was only one way to ease the pain. He asked us to come in and see his babies. We followed him in and they had what I guess was 75 dogs in their kennels. Each one, he called by name. We walked through one time & looked at every dog. There were so many, it was very confusing. We met a few, that Max let out for us to play with. All were very lovable & excited to see us. Judy & I decided to walk back through the shelter alone & look at the dogs again. We found this mixed lab called Midnight. Judy formed an instant bond with this dog. Max put her on a leash and told us to walk around the property with her. Of course, being outside the kennels, she found all new smells and spent her time sniffing everything. We walked her until the 98+ degrees got to us all. We took her back inside and asked to see her file. Max told us she is a mixed lab between 1-1/2 and 2 years old that they have had since February. Someone found her & gave her to Max to rescue. That is all the history we have on this dog.
Max offered to let us take Midnight home for a 7 day trial. I was very surprised when Judy agreed to do this. She was so excited about taking Midnight home. So, we loaded her up in the Ridgeline (Thank you Honda for the folding back seats) and brought her home.
A little more background. I have a room off of our garage, which serves and my office, playroom, & my personal doghouse. I have a computer, stereo, 2 TV’s and all my “manly” decorations in this room. I have a heater & air conditioner in this room that Judy does not want me to use very often. A couple of years ago, when it got cold, we let Lady sleep in this room. She immediately took over this room as hers. For the next 2 years, she never left this room, except to go out and use the bathroom or hang out with us on the patio. She had in made. 75 degrees in the summer and winter.
On the way home, the first thing I told Judy was that this dog would not live in this room! We get home & the first thing Midnight does is drag Judy across the backseat of the Ridgeline as she is ready to get out of the truck. Judy has this big bruise on her backside. She tells Midnight that this is not the way to start out. I made sure Judy was not hurt too bad, but it was really funny (after the fact). We let Midnight in our fenced in backyard & she checks the place out. Not to friendly, but not too shy either. We watch her & of course Judy decides it too hot outside for Midnight to stay in the backyard. I tell her, that we will let her in my “room” until it cools off. I try to get her to come in the room & she wants no part of it. Finally, we put her back on the lease and “drag” her into the room. She is very scared because she thinks it’s another cage. She finally calms down & decides it’s not too bad. We are with her, rubbing her when she lets us & she lies down & goes to sleep. We let her sleep awhile & then she wakes up. We decide that she has cooled down & can go back outside. She darts out the door like she never wants to go back again. We spend another ½ hour outside & I decide to go in “MY ROOM” and watch TV. You guessed it, she beat me back in the door. (I said she was a mixed breed, not dumb.) So I guess I have lost my room again. She spent the night in the room until 4:00 AM when Judy woke up to “check on her.” Max’s wife, Della, called us Friday night to check on us & Midnight. We gave her an update & she told us she would call again Sunday. By now, she owns us. Saturday was a long day. We spent the morning doing yard work. Midnight sat in the garage while I cut the grass. She didn’t like the sound of the lawnmower. Saturday afternoon, we loaded her in the Ridgeline & took her to the PetSmart store in a neighboring town. $100 later we left with a new collar, leash, bed & some toys. Sunday was a good day. She got friendlier by the minute. The kids came over & she spent the afternoon playing with us.
Monday night, we signed the adoption papers and made Midnight officially ours. Today, we took her to our vet & she got a clean checkup. She learned how to get in & out of the Ridgeline by herself this afternoon.
Max was right. There is only one way to replace the hurt. I still miss Lady but watching thid dog learn to trust us and to love us is great.