Last night was tough at our house... and today, I've had a very heavy heart.
When I got home from work, I let Hershey, our Chocolate Lab, and the puppies out to potty. The puppies are Peanut and Luke, two of the puppies she gave birth to seven weeks ago today; and also Brenda, now known as Rosetta who we have been puppysitting for. Brenda/Rosetta is a sister to Peanut and Luke.
Hershey trotted right out the gate; the puppies tried to follow suit, but I headed them off and closed the gate so they wouldn't escape. I came back in the house and proceeded to fix a nice Valentine's meal for my family.
Big Joz got home around 6:15 and one of the first questions he asked me was where his brown dog was. I told him that I had let her out earlier but, come to think of it, hadn't seen her since. It was unusual for her not to go running to greet his truck when he pulled up.
We ate supper on the couch and a couple of different times talked about where Hershey might be. We were watching the Westminster Dog Show on tv. Bud and Pud wanted to try out the new yogurt place in town that was having its grand opening, so I gave them my debit card and off they went. They returned about 8:30.
Bud ran in the house screaming something about Hershey. My gut told me something was bad wrong... I thought she had been attacked by another animal and that her wounded body must be laying in the driveway. It took me a second to take in what had happened.
Big Joz fumbled to get her collar off so he could remove her cold, stiff body from the picket fence. Cold? Stiff? How long had she been there??
Big Joz laid her on the driveway and I noticed a little blood; her eyes were still open. I had hope that she really wasn't gone.
Hershey had tried to jump over the fence, back into the back yard. I'll never know what time it happened... I never heard a thing. She didn't make it over the fence; her collar got hung on one of the pickets. She must have struggled hard... the pickets on either side of where she hung had been chewed in half. She tried to set herself free... but she couldn't get to the picket that was holding her up. In the daylight, I saw the scratch and claw marks on the fence. My heart just broke. Our sweet "Bwown Dod" had struggled for her life... right outside our back door.
Big Joz laid beside his faithful friend and cried like a baby as he held her. My heart just ached for him. I asked him what we were going to do with her and he said he was going to bury her in the woods, up the hill beside the driveway, a place where she and Ben spent lots of time running around and frolicking. I asked if he needed any help and he just shook his head no. He got a shovel and headed into the woods. Moments later, I saw Bud headed up the hill with a shovel in his hand... he was going to help his dad.
I went inside and got the sleeping bag that had been in the whelping box with Hershey and her babies just weeks before. I took it outside and stretched it out to wrap her up in. Big Joz carefully laid her on the sleeping bag and we began to roll her up... Ben kept poking his head in the bundle, as if he couldn't figure out why we would be wrapping her up. Big Joz laid her in the grave he and Bud had dug for her and, again, Ben acted like he just couldn't figure out what we were doing. Big Joz laid her collar on her and we all cried as he and Bud filled in the grave.
My children had never buried a pet. They don't remember Annabel. Big Joz gave her to me for my birthday the first year we were married. She died five years later, on my birthday.
I asked God to watch over our "Bwown Dod" and we all cried. Ben didn't want to leave her.
We all have felt guilt... I was the one who closed the gate. I was the one who didn't hear her struggle. When Big Joz came home from work, he walked right past where she had been. I know she must have been there then, because if she hadn't, she wouldn't have come running. If she had still been alive, he would have heard or seen her struggling. When Bud came home, he took the trash can down and returned the recycling bin to its place... right beside where she had been. He never saw her either. She was dark brown... against the reddish brown fence... it was dark outside. It was understandable. I think Pud's guilty feelings come from her always saying she never liked Hershey... I think she was simply jealous--Pud's daddy really loved Hershey and Pud didn't want to share!
I'm going to miss her. The way she always made a huge mess when she ate because she was always in a hurry; the way she lifted the toilet lids and drank out of the toilets; the way she loved her kennel before the puppies were born; the way she hogged the foot of the bed after the babies were born; the way she would bark when she didn't know why she was barking... she simply barked because Ben did; the way she'd jump in Big Joz's truck when she was ready to go somewhere; the way she'd jump in my car when she was very pregnant with the puppies so she wouldn't have to stay by herself; the way she was SUCH an attention whore... if ANYONE was getting love, she had to make sure she got her share as well; the way Ben would trick her to go outside so she'd leave him alone. There's so much I'm going to miss.
Hershey, we were blessed to have you in our family these last 13 1/2 months. I hope you knew how much you were loved.
When I got home from work, I let Hershey, our Chocolate Lab, and the puppies out to potty. The puppies are Peanut and Luke, two of the puppies she gave birth to seven weeks ago today; and also Brenda, now known as Rosetta who we have been puppysitting for. Brenda/Rosetta is a sister to Peanut and Luke.
Hershey trotted right out the gate; the puppies tried to follow suit, but I headed them off and closed the gate so they wouldn't escape. I came back in the house and proceeded to fix a nice Valentine's meal for my family.
Big Joz got home around 6:15 and one of the first questions he asked me was where his brown dog was. I told him that I had let her out earlier but, come to think of it, hadn't seen her since. It was unusual for her not to go running to greet his truck when he pulled up.
We ate supper on the couch and a couple of different times talked about where Hershey might be. We were watching the Westminster Dog Show on tv. Bud and Pud wanted to try out the new yogurt place in town that was having its grand opening, so I gave them my debit card and off they went. They returned about 8:30.
Bud ran in the house screaming something about Hershey. My gut told me something was bad wrong... I thought she had been attacked by another animal and that her wounded body must be laying in the driveway. It took me a second to take in what had happened.
Big Joz fumbled to get her collar off so he could remove her cold, stiff body from the picket fence. Cold? Stiff? How long had she been there??
Big Joz laid her on the driveway and I noticed a little blood; her eyes were still open. I had hope that she really wasn't gone.
Hershey had tried to jump over the fence, back into the back yard. I'll never know what time it happened... I never heard a thing. She didn't make it over the fence; her collar got hung on one of the pickets. She must have struggled hard... the pickets on either side of where she hung had been chewed in half. She tried to set herself free... but she couldn't get to the picket that was holding her up. In the daylight, I saw the scratch and claw marks on the fence. My heart just broke. Our sweet "Bwown Dod" had struggled for her life... right outside our back door.
Big Joz laid beside his faithful friend and cried like a baby as he held her. My heart just ached for him. I asked him what we were going to do with her and he said he was going to bury her in the woods, up the hill beside the driveway, a place where she and Ben spent lots of time running around and frolicking. I asked if he needed any help and he just shook his head no. He got a shovel and headed into the woods. Moments later, I saw Bud headed up the hill with a shovel in his hand... he was going to help his dad.
I went inside and got the sleeping bag that had been in the whelping box with Hershey and her babies just weeks before. I took it outside and stretched it out to wrap her up in. Big Joz carefully laid her on the sleeping bag and we began to roll her up... Ben kept poking his head in the bundle, as if he couldn't figure out why we would be wrapping her up. Big Joz laid her in the grave he and Bud had dug for her and, again, Ben acted like he just couldn't figure out what we were doing. Big Joz laid her collar on her and we all cried as he and Bud filled in the grave.
My children had never buried a pet. They don't remember Annabel. Big Joz gave her to me for my birthday the first year we were married. She died five years later, on my birthday.
I asked God to watch over our "Bwown Dod" and we all cried. Ben didn't want to leave her.
We all have felt guilt... I was the one who closed the gate. I was the one who didn't hear her struggle. When Big Joz came home from work, he walked right past where she had been. I know she must have been there then, because if she hadn't, she wouldn't have come running. If she had still been alive, he would have heard or seen her struggling. When Bud came home, he took the trash can down and returned the recycling bin to its place... right beside where she had been. He never saw her either. She was dark brown... against the reddish brown fence... it was dark outside. It was understandable. I think Pud's guilty feelings come from her always saying she never liked Hershey... I think she was simply jealous--Pud's daddy really loved Hershey and Pud didn't want to share!
I'm going to miss her. The way she always made a huge mess when she ate because she was always in a hurry; the way she lifted the toilet lids and drank out of the toilets; the way she loved her kennel before the puppies were born; the way she hogged the foot of the bed after the babies were born; the way she would bark when she didn't know why she was barking... she simply barked because Ben did; the way she'd jump in Big Joz's truck when she was ready to go somewhere; the way she'd jump in my car when she was very pregnant with the puppies so she wouldn't have to stay by herself; the way she was SUCH an attention whore... if ANYONE was getting love, she had to make sure she got her share as well; the way Ben would trick her to go outside so she'd leave him alone. There's so much I'm going to miss.
Hershey, we were blessed to have you in our family these last 13 1/2 months. I hope you knew how much you were loved.
