We lost my "little dog" Bogey yesterday. And it was a complete shocker. We went to bed Tuesday night and he was fine. I got up at 3:00 a.m. to use the restroom and stepped in a pile of fresh vomit. I let him out because he looked like he urgently needed to go. By 3:15 he was bleeding from his rectum. We rushed him to the emergency vet and he was gone by 4:25 a.m. We really don't know what happened. But in my heart I know that he had something going on inside that had been brewing for awhile. And I also know in my heart that we made the right decision by ending his life.....
Bogey came into our lives in July, almost 3 years ago. He was 7 years old when we got him. He was 10 when he died. From the best we could tell, he was a mix of Rhodesian Ridgeback, German Shepherd, and maybe a little lab. He was 55 lbs., full of energy, with just the most amazing amber eyes I'd ever seen on a dog. TJ called me on a Wednesday one week. It seemed that one of his clients had a dog that he couldn't keep anymore. His wife wanted him to take Bogey to the SPCA. TJ wanted to know if I could find him a home. I told him we'd have to foster him for awhile......and then he never left....
When Bogey came to live with us, he was tentative about everything. He was never allowed to get on the furniture where he lived before. He was apparently not allowed to kiss anyone (as he absolutely wouldn't do that). He just kind of sat in front of you and waited until you "allowed him" to come to you. That quickly changed. The first time we asked him to get on the couch, you could tell he was shocked. He looked at us like "Are you kidding me?" After that though, he knew what his freedoms were. The dogs don't live in our house. We live in their house - ha ha. Although we thought he was going to be TJ's dog (I had Mabel after all), it became apparent quickly, that he was going to be MY dog too (although, Lorelai would argue with you and tell you that Bogey was HER dog). I nicknamed him "little dog" and we became best friends. At night I would usually go to bed before TJ. Bogey would jump up and lay down in the crook of my arm. If I didn't pet him long enough, he would growl until I started petting him again. When TJ walked into the room, he knew it was time to get off and would assume his position either on TJ's side of the bed or on the carpet on my side of the bed. He was never very far. In the mornings, he would wait for my alarm to go off. He would come into the room. And as I sat up in bed, he jumped up next to TJ and curled up into the crook of TJ's arm. It was very hard getting up this morning, knowing that he wouldn't be jumping into "his" place next to TJ.
Over the past 2 & 1/2 years, Bogey has been a blessing to us. I will miss everything about him. I probably only got a handful of kisses from him in the past 2 & 1/2 years (he finally started giving them out - so I knew I was special to him).
When we took him to the emergency clinic and made the decision to end his suffering, it was probably the hardest thing I'd ever had to do. I still cry thinking about it. We went into the room and they brought Bogey to us. But here's the thing.....he went to TJ....He wouldn't come to me. I had to go over to him and look him in the eyes. And when I did....I knew it was time to say goodbye. It was almost like Bogey was having as hard a time letting go of me as I was having letting go of him.
In my heaven, there will be animals. God promises that my heaven will be MY HEAVEN. So I know I will see Bogey again. He's up there romping with Dad now. I can't wait to see both of them.
Until later......
Bogey came into our lives in July, almost 3 years ago. He was 7 years old when we got him. He was 10 when he died. From the best we could tell, he was a mix of Rhodesian Ridgeback, German Shepherd, and maybe a little lab. He was 55 lbs., full of energy, with just the most amazing amber eyes I'd ever seen on a dog. TJ called me on a Wednesday one week. It seemed that one of his clients had a dog that he couldn't keep anymore. His wife wanted him to take Bogey to the SPCA. TJ wanted to know if I could find him a home. I told him we'd have to foster him for awhile......and then he never left....
When Bogey came to live with us, he was tentative about everything. He was never allowed to get on the furniture where he lived before. He was apparently not allowed to kiss anyone (as he absolutely wouldn't do that). He just kind of sat in front of you and waited until you "allowed him" to come to you. That quickly changed. The first time we asked him to get on the couch, you could tell he was shocked. He looked at us like "Are you kidding me?" After that though, he knew what his freedoms were. The dogs don't live in our house. We live in their house - ha ha. Although we thought he was going to be TJ's dog (I had Mabel after all), it became apparent quickly, that he was going to be MY dog too (although, Lorelai would argue with you and tell you that Bogey was HER dog). I nicknamed him "little dog" and we became best friends. At night I would usually go to bed before TJ. Bogey would jump up and lay down in the crook of my arm. If I didn't pet him long enough, he would growl until I started petting him again. When TJ walked into the room, he knew it was time to get off and would assume his position either on TJ's side of the bed or on the carpet on my side of the bed. He was never very far. In the mornings, he would wait for my alarm to go off. He would come into the room. And as I sat up in bed, he jumped up next to TJ and curled up into the crook of TJ's arm. It was very hard getting up this morning, knowing that he wouldn't be jumping into "his" place next to TJ.
Over the past 2 & 1/2 years, Bogey has been a blessing to us. I will miss everything about him. I probably only got a handful of kisses from him in the past 2 & 1/2 years (he finally started giving them out - so I knew I was special to him).
When we took him to the emergency clinic and made the decision to end his suffering, it was probably the hardest thing I'd ever had to do. I still cry thinking about it. We went into the room and they brought Bogey to us. But here's the thing.....he went to TJ....He wouldn't come to me. I had to go over to him and look him in the eyes. And when I did....I knew it was time to say goodbye. It was almost like Bogey was having as hard a time letting go of me as I was having letting go of him.
In my heaven, there will be animals. God promises that my heaven will be MY HEAVEN. So I know I will see Bogey again. He's up there romping with Dad now. I can't wait to see both of them.
Until later......
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