But the real reason for my absence is that 2013 continues to kick my rear end…. I am SO ready for this year to be over! As if losing my son, an extremely difficult spot in my marriage, and resigning my job and ruining my chance on getting hired for the current school year (more on that later) weren't enough… We said good-bye to my old girl this weekend.
Meet Dutchess… She was my best furry friend this past year.
We adopted Dutchess from Lab Rescue in September 2006. She was our 2nd black lab- and she had BIG shoes to fill after having Jazzy. The moment AFTER we committed to adopting her we learned she literally knew NOTHING about being a pet. She had been a stray (the adoption event had info on each dog- her info said something along the lines of: Found as a stray. Spayed and heart worm negative.- Other dogs had huge paragraphs… we picked the one who had zero info.) She didn't know how to jump into the truck, how to walk on indoor floors, how to climb stairs… not to mention she knew nothing of basic commands like sit and stay.
With a lot of love and work we turned her around as best we could. The vet helped us determine that the spots on her ears that we were told were fly bites were really scars from dog fights… which explained why she NEVER liked other 4-legged creatures….
2.5 years into our lives with Dutchess- she had turned into a Daddy's girl and only slightly gray.
Dutchy loved people- she thought anyone who came to visit was there to see her… we had to speak in code to use words like walk (klaw, stroll or tour), food (doof), and ride (r-i-d-e) as they were all things that got her attention even when she was in the deepest of sleep. The beach was one of her favorite places to visit even though she hated the water. She was a snuggler and in her old age had started to enjoy "selfies."
She was our side kick for sure! Phil at our garage- Quality Service Center commented on more than one occasion that Dutchess reflected our personalities/expressions perfectly.
We had noticed her getting very old- you can see the "gray beard"… she moved slower, her back legs working as one, slept longer, eating changed… we knew her time was coming… Last saturday she started going down hill quickly and late Monday night (at bedtime) she stopped eating (and the tears started flowing.) Matt and I spent the night taking turns sleeping on the floor with her (she wouldn't jump into bed and refused to be picked up) and she snuggled us close! In the morning she got up and wagged her tail for a few steps and then curled up on one of her favorite blankets. We called the vet (that's a very hard call to make!) and carried her (all nestled in that blanket)… one last ride in the car to the vet… where we learned she had kidney failure. They took her out of the room (after much hesitation from us) to put in an IV and she decided she needed to WALK back into the room to be with us… she walked in tail wagging and planted herself right next to Matt- all she wanted was to be with us. We bawled! We loved on her and said our goodbyes. The vet said "I can tell she was a special pet." No sir- she was a life saver during the hardest months of my life! She was a big sister- we realized after we knew- that she knew I was pregnant much before we did… she was a best friend… she stuck around until she knew Matt and I had our stuff together. I strongly believe there is a reason she went downhill a week AFTER we were baptized…
Dutchess was a disaster… a slobbering, shedding disaster… but she LOVED us… and we LOVED her… she LOVED our friends… and you either loved her or couldn't wait for her to leave you alone… She made life interesting… and we now have quite a list of "requirements" for our next dog- most of them things we learned from dear Dutchess…
One thing is for sure… We loved Dutchess and we miss her terribly! I hate coming home to a dog-less home!
We are taking advantage of our dog free time… Matt took me on a spur of the moment overnight getaway- something that always had to plan well in advance so we had a dog sitter… I'm cleaning like crazy (and feel like I'm getting somewhere without a dog shedding over everything I clean) and we are making plans for bringing a new dog home.
In the mean time… one last snapshot of my BFF (Best Furry Friend) and all of her fuzzy, squeaky friends…
We Love You Dutcy and Miss you so very much!
this was so heartwarning - Dutchy was an awesome family member and I am so sorry she is gone but she is watching over you and Matt with TJ and you will see her again someday - big hugs <3
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