If God had a dog …

I was driving along yesterday, thinking about how Heidi is growing up and becoming quite a nice dog. It has been a difficult week with Cornball*. It has occurred to me that he may always pee on the floor every five minutes and walk through it, and wouldn’t that be awful. I was remembering how hard it was to housebreak Heidi. Her sister, Chloe, little Miz Wonderdog, was practically housebroken at birth. Chloe is multi talented, petite, and perfect in every way. I thought we had gotten a defective puppy. I was driving along yesterday, thinking about how far Heidi has come, and what a good girl she is.

As I was driving along, thinking about Heidi, I got a lump in my throat. And then a familiar song came on the radio. And I started bawling my head off. It was the song that was in my head as I waited for the vet to come back into the room with the drugs that would make Noah go to sleep and that would stop his heart.

While I was driving along, thinking about dogs, it occurred to me that, while Heidi is a good girl, Noah was great, and she’s not Noah. I’m pretty sure that if God had a dog, it would be very much like Noah.

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Works for Me Wednesday is themed this week. Shannon asks for tips for busting boredom. I did not participate because I think her idea is great and I’d like to try it. WFMW: The “Mom, I’m Bored” Edition

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I got a Thinking of You card today from the veterinary practice where Noah was put to sleep. I thought that was pretty sweet! The print on the card said,

“Forever in your heart will remain the good times you enjoyed wtih your pet. Our sympathy is with you in your loss.”

and then someone had written, “Please accept our condolences for your loss of Noah. Losing a family member is never easy. Noah definitely knew how much you loved him. Sincerely, The Doctors and Staff of _______________”

How nice is that?? It doesn’t really make a difference to me if I had never gotten a card from them, but I think it’s very meaningful for someone. It may be very comforting to a single or old person who may not have anyone to talk to who gets how much of a hole these critters make when they’re gone. What a great ministry idea! I can’t see anyone in any church I’ve been a part of starting a “Pet Loss” committee, but who wouldn’t love to be reminded that the same God who knows when a sparrow falls also knows and cares about their hurts?

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It has been a few days since I’ve posted. It is not for lack of subject matter!

The other day, we acquired Jaeger’s brother.

Jaeger was very happy to see a familiar face! He would’ve put many a circus performing dog to shame, let me tell you! Both dogs slept well that night.

And I’m posting this because it’s just so pathetic:

It’s a new day

This week has certainly gone much differently than I thought it would when it started. I had planned to get a lot done on Monday because it has been so long since this house has had a thorough cleaning. Noah got sick and then nothing got done. Mr. N tried to cheer me up Tuesday night by showing me pictures of puppies for sale. They were the kind of puppies that would fall under the category of “Least Likely to be Found in the Nicklebee House”. While he was doing that, he was slipping in pictures of and ads for dogs he really wanted.

Yesterday, I spent a lot of time doing research on the dogs Mr. N wants. Today, the Little Guy and I went on a little field trip to a land far, far away.

Introducing, from A Land Far, Far Away:

Jaeger** Nicklebee*

He was very shy when we got him home. And then Heidi, High Queen of the Nicklebeedom, came outside.

He’s okay.  He’s definitely not Noah – no dog ever will be, but Mr. Nicklebee is having fun with him.

** Jaeger sounds like Yayger.

Shock and Awe

The Shock

Noah died today.

I can hardly believe I’ve typed that. He was fine last night, and then, this morning, he was not fine at all.

The vet said that she saw a mass on his spleen and that the mass had ruptured. His abdominal cavity was full of fluid which was presumed to be blood, based on his symptoms. She said that it has been her experience that that is cancer and the prognosis is grim. For a pretty penny, we could’ve had her open him up and have a look, but the single digit percentage of patients who had benign tumors was not a good enough indication for it, in my opinion. Even if we had the money to put him through all that, the life expectancy with that kind of cancer is mere months after the surgery.

He went peacefully while I stroked the soft fur of his head and neck.

The Awe

I am amazed at how God looked out for Noah. The tumor could’ve ruptured in the middle of a busy week and we might not have noticed for a whole day. As it was, we noticed first thing in the morning and got on it. This could’ve happened when we were flat broke a couple of weeks ago. Things have been really tight, but I happened to have enough to give me the confidence that the vet wouldn’t turn us away, which seems to be standard practice at the clinic where I took him.

Noah was the second of two great dogs after a really trying dog experience. Let’s just say that beagles need room to run and bark and play and run and bark. Noah and Rocky were both very obviously gifts from God. We couldn’t have been better matched.

I am thankful to God for giving us nearly 8 years with Noah and for not allowing him to suffer a lot before he died.

I love you, Noah. Rest in piece, faithful friend.

Noah Nicklebee*

June 2, 1999 – May 26, 2008

WFMW: Walking a strong dog without losing your arm.

Do you dread walking your dog because it often seems more like the dog is walking you? Do you find that your leash hand has lost a layer of skin by the time you get back home?

I grew to hate walking our dogs because they pulled so hard. Choke chains work, but I had a problem keeping them up high enough on their necks, and then I’d end up with something about as effective as a saddle. The head collar didn’t work, either. You have to have a dog dumb enough not to back out of it.

My friend, Nina, once mentioned that she uses a prong collar for her large, energetic, very strong lab. Prior to that, I thought that was terribly cruel and would never have considered it. Knowing Nina, who doesn’t have a cruel bone in her body, I considered it.

Time passed and I forgot about the collar, until I was visiting my friend, Guinevere*. Her dog, Gideon, was a handful on a leash as a young pup. She said that he walked like a completely different dog with the prong collar. I had an opportunity to have a closer look at the collar she used and saw for myself that the points were blunt-tipped, so they only applied a near-pinch pressure and didn’t harpoon the dog’s neck.

On my way home from Guinevere’s house, I stopped at the pet store and picked up a prong collar to try with my dogs.

The first time I put the collar on Rocky, he cried out like I was killing him! He was used to pulling me where ever he wanted to go, so he took off with a flying leap. He suffered from severe wanderlust and wanted to run, wild and free. In a couple of minutes, though, he decided to yield his will to that of the Lord of the Leash.

Rocky (may he rest in peace), Noah, and, now, Heidi, adjusted well to the collar, and our walks have been enjoyable ever since. Noah and Heidi mostly walk next to us instead of charging off down the road, the dog walker clinging to the leash handle and flapping in the breeze behind them.

If you are having trouble getting your dog to walk with you, I recommend giving the prong collar a try. It does not harm them when used correctly, and you may not always need it if you walk them regularly enough that they’re used to cooperating.

For your dog’s safety, use a pronged collar according to the manufacturer’s instructions. This is a good article regarding the “how to” if you need help.

To see what works for others, check out this week’s Works for Me Wednesday.