A Dog's Tail . . .

 

Dear Prudence

2013 - New puppy in the house

You might remember that we lost our puppy a few months ago. Most people who own a pet, and especially dog owners, can vouch for the pain of losing them. It truly sucks.Time has passed and the pain, while still lurking, has lessened enough that I thought I might offer a eulogy of sorts for our special girl and perhaps an ode to pets in general. It seems the least I can do. 

We have lost other dogs before Prudence and it is always painful. It’s just that we had her for much longer and had many more adventures with her so this doubly hurt.

Never owned a cat, never owned a gerbil, never owned fish; never owned anything but a dog. I assume there is some connection with those pets as well but I can only say that if that connection is anything like the one with a dog well then, I feel sorry for those owner’s loss too.

Prudie and her niece Lucy

Pru, like her little predecessor Penny Lane, was a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. As you can see from her picture, she confirms the world-wide opinion that they are among most beautiful of dog breeds. The poorly kept secret is that the only thing more beautiful than their appearance is their loving nature.

Of course, all dogs tend to love their owners (even if we don't deserve it) but Cav’s are special. After all, they were bred to be lovers and lapdogs specifically for their British royalty masters. King Charles – duh! (Something else besides the Magna Carta to be grateful to the Brits for?)

It's always naptime - Daddy's girl

Prudie’s breed, the Cavaliers, are noted not just for their beauty and wonderful personality, sadly they are also noted for their bad hearts. Yup, a curse of their breed (and breeding) is a faulty ticker - very few Cav’s live to 10. Pru blew past that and made it almost to 13.

A cynic might say that this is just another thing about us top-of-the-food-chain dwellers; we get to screw up other species by mixing different breeds for our own enjoyment. For example, Labradoodles are being diagnosed with hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia and Addison’s; all recognized disorders in both parent breeds. 

Ah well, no price is too high to satisfy our human whims.

Penny Lane (Died of kidney failure at two)

Cavaliers are, or at least Prudie was, weird about other dogs. Not mean just not interested - Cavs don't have a mean bone in their body. The only other dog that Pru got excited about was our neighbor's Cavalier, a smaller spitting image of her, their darling Chloe. Those two could spot each other blocks away! The sad punchline: Chloe died last fall . . . of heart problems, leaving Pru friendless.

Boating with mom

            But I digress.

One of their less than positive traits, besides dying young, is incredible shedding. Yes, Cav’s have a gloriously beautiful coat - and they share it generously throughout the house. We could vacuum up what seemed a dog’s worth of hair everyday – very irritating. You guessed it though, Mrs Dear Leader and I now really miss that irritating chore. We also miss the click, click, click of her nails as she moved from one of her lounging areas to another. (Towards the end that was pretty much her only exercise.) Yes, it was time.

Wow, try this dad, it's really comfortable!

We also "miss" the chore of administering her medicine twice a day. Yeah, ironically Pru’s heart was as strong as a bull's but she had canine diabetes. Anyway, she and I had developed our own little routine for giving her medicine: five little pieces of cheese – a favorite of her’s – dispersed with her joint medicine pills, the insulin and her eye drops, (did I mention that Mrs Dear Leader had gifted Pru with cataract surgery - $$$$ - a couple years ago?) Anyway, five pieces. Twice a day. Every day. She knew and expected every step to be followed and knew when it was due. Never was there a better patient.

Don't leave me in FL!

I admit I don’t miss paying the 300 bucks a month for the medicine. Nonetheless, I would be delighted to do so if she were still with us. But as I said, it was time. Between the pills and shots and trips to the vet you could see in her beautiful brown eyes that she was just . . . weary.

As an aside, apparently vets and pharmaceutical companies cracked the code on how much we love our pets and decided to cash in by gouging us. (Sorry, sore subject with me.) 

I think we have all thought about – and envied? - the person who went to sleep and just never woke up. Well, we were hoping that would happen with Prudie. We had been through the terrible pain and turmoil of putting our Penny Lane to sleep and knew what that meant. But not to be – she was a tough old girl! - so MDL, the strongest and bravest between us, finally made the decision and the arrangements.

Smart dog, knows her dad! 

The saving grace is that today you can have the vet come to your house. Your best friend can be comfortable in her own home as you say good by. It was all very peaceful and calm as she quietly went to sleep . . . forever. 

It hurts like hell but we are comforted by the fact that it was the right thing to do. Maybe someday we’ll figure out a way to treat us humans with this kind of dignity and peace when it's our time.

There is this wonderful poem and meme called the Rainbow Bridge. It alludes to your pet passing over a bridge when they die to some mystical place where they await their human to join them. It’s a sweet, comforting sentiment. Even though I doubt we "go" anywhere when we keel over, I would sure be delighted to go wherever the dogs are. (Sadly, I’m pretty sure they wouldn't have us troublesome humans!) 

Pretty girl    2013-2026

Finally, one thing I have learned is that perhaps aside from your mother, you will never be loved by anyone like you are by your dog. Don't take it for granted!

So that is our tale of joy and woe, all part of giving your heart to a pet. 

Thanks for allowing me to share.

PS

The more clever among you maybe caught the naming theme we inherited from our daughter. Hmmm, what for the next puppy: Lady Madonna, Lovely Rita, Polyethylene Pam, Eleanor . . . ?

But I think it will be a while before we go through this again.

Music

Good Dogs   Jameson Rodgers