ashetlandpony | Entries tagged with pets

Twice in the last 3 days, Mister Hairy Houdini Husky here managed to escape from the back yard through a rotten fence board, completely unbeknownst to me until my next-door neighbor, Meghan, called to tell me he was outside my front gate waiting patiently to be let back in.

I found his escape route soon enough, but despite me blocking it with a piece of plywood and a deck chair, he managed to push all that aside and escape again. Then yesterday, thanks to my neighbor in back, Steve, the fence was finally secured, so Sneaky-Pete will hopefully be staying put now; at least until he finds another way out in future.

Nice to have neighbors looking out for my dog and me. :) I do worry about Zigzag getting out, though, because he is not car-savvy at all and just dashes out into the road without looking. He also bears grudges against a couple of other male dogs in the area and I'm concerned he might get into a fight with one or both of them if he got the chance. But, not this time, and hopefully never if I can help it.

...to Zigzag! He came to live with me 6 years ago today. 🐕 He was 2 then, so he's a middle-aged gent of 8 now. Time does fly...

The very first pic of my scruffy new pal, June 1, 2015. He was definitely in need of a bath.

I don't think I ever told the story of how he got named "Zigzag." He was called "Spirit" before, or at least that's what I was told, but he never answered to it. I'd call him that and get no response at all. Pretty quickly I concluded that the name was probably just as fake as the one the previous owner used for herself, and I'd have to come up with a new one. But what?

Pretty boy! Happy Zigzag after his first visit to the grooming parlor, June 9, 2015.

Then, four days after I got him, I'm taking him for a walk, and, still curious about his new neighborhood, he pulls me hard over to the left to check something out, then he pulls me hard over to the right for something else, then back to the left, then right, then left, right, left, right, and pretty soon I say out loud, "Wow, you really zig-zag!" *ding!* "Zigzag"! I liked the sound of that, and I guess he did, too, because he started responding to it right away.

So that's how he became Zigzag: the husky who can't walk a straight line. 🐕

Those baby blues, November 18, 2015.

Sometimes a person's whole life can change virtually instantly, with no warning whatsoever.

Ten years ago today, that happened to me. On Saturday, November 21, 2009, my friend Allison - who volunteered at the county animal shelter - sent me this message:

"A mexican family has been backyard breeding GSDs had 4 of their dogs get out of their yard the other day, and they came back and only redeemed one of female pups to breed later. The stud dog who got out is GORGEOUS, his name is shadow, he is pure black with a white star on his chest. He was just neutered today. His temperament is great, and he's a good dog all around, 3-4 years old, very sweet, submissive because he was apparently hit. They were all outdoor dogs so would need a bit of work..."

The shelter's online ad for Shadow, and other pictures taken of him during intake.

My golden retriever, Bucky, had been gone 7 months by that time, and I was only then starting to think I could be ready to adopt a new dog. But the moment I saw "black shepherd" in Allison's description, it brought to mind the black German shepherds that my mother's family kept when she was young, and that was enough to convince me that this "Shadow" at the shelter might just be the chosen one.

He was! The instant I met him, I knew Shadow must be mine. Not only was he gorgeous, as Allison had said, I looked into his eyes and saw the same gentle and sensitive intelligence that Bucky's expressed. There was no question: I would be back first thing Monday morning to adopt Shadow. I was 100% meant to have this dog!

The first photo I ever took of Shadow on the day he came to live with me.

Shadow would be my faithful companion for the next 9-1/3 years, until he died on January 28, 2019. During that period of 3,354 days, he and I went on at least 5,000 walks, covering a total distance together equal to or greater than the breadth of the continent. No other dog, or even any other person, for that matter, was by my side for longer than Shadow.

To me, the 2010s truly were Shadow's decade. Thank you, Allison, for making possible the ten best years of my later life.

Shadow's been gone six months today. Still missing him a lot, and feeling nostalgic in general about the all-too-brief period in my life when I had two dogs. I doubt that will ever happen again.

Had this dream this morning.

I'm walking Shadow along a sidewalk.
Zigzag runs to join us.
Two dogs together, only one leash.
I take the leash off Shadow and put it on Zigzag.
We all get to the corner together.
Cross the street, Shadow vanishes.
A few steps more, Zigzag's gone, too.
Now I'm alone.

Pretty obvious symbolism there.

Not a happy day, as you might guess.

Current Music: Queen: Who Wants to Live Forever

'Shadow' – a memorial portrait of my dear departed companion by Josefine Spenke.

The framed artwork now hangs in a place of honor in my living room. It's so good to see Shadow back in the house again!

Ten years ago today, I bade farewell to my first canine companion, Bucky. He was a total sweetheart, an absolute angel – the mellowest, most chill dog imaginable. I adopted him when he was 2, but due to kidney failure, he didn't even live to be 10. Bucky's early death shattered me. He deserved a much longer life than fate granted him. I can hardly believe it's been a whole decade now since that terrible day I had to say good-bye. I'll always love you, Bucky. You – like Shadow after you – were the best dog in the whole wide world...

This past week, I added portraits of Bucky and Shadow to my family shrine. I always thought my dogs belonged there, too, but somehow, it wasn't until I lost Shadow that the time seemed right.

And yesterday, I was both surprised and deeply touched to receive this memorial stone for Shadow from the veterinary clinic. It was a wonderful, thoughtful gesture, and I appreciate it more than I can express.

Shadow's passing marks a real end of an era for me. For one thing, I'm too old now to have another large-breed dog. It's also unlikely that I'll ever know that degree of companionship again. In all, Shadow spent more time in my physical presence than any other person or animal in my adult lifetime. No human was ever so consistently by my side as was this faithful dog. The fact that he's gone now makes a future without him appear truly bleak...

December 29, 2015.

Current Mood: sad

My sweet, gentle, loving and devoted canine companion, Shadow, passed away peacefully at home a week ago today. He was 12-1/2 years old: born June 21, 2006, adopted November 23, 2009, died January 28, 2019.

The black beauty in his prime. At home, December 3, 2011.

Shadow was the friendliest large-breed dog I've ever known, and the most playful one, too. He was like a big, overgrown puppy, especially when playing with his ball. When we went for walks, I never had to worry about Shadow interacting with people. He wanted to meet and greet everyone – he especially loved children – and everyone he befriended loved him in return.

He was also exceptionally intelligent. Shadow was no less aware of the world around him than most people. Nothing escaped this dog's notice, and his attention was focused like a laser beam on my every move. I couldn't go anywhere or do anything without him following me and watching me. He literally was my shadow!

Probably my favorite portrait. At Trinidad Pier, July 27, 2012.

Unfortunately, almost all German shepherd dogs develop problems with their hindquarters in later life, and Shadow was no exception. He started having difficulty walking in early 2017. By April of that year, his gait was so unsteady that I feared it wouldn't be more than a few weeks – maybe only days – before he couldn't walk at all.

As luck would have it, Shadow had a dental emergency on a Sunday that April which forced me to take him to a different veterinarian. Long story short, the new vet prescribed a medication that managed his condition so well that it ended up extending his life by an astonishing 21 months. It was nothing less than a miracle.

Two elderly gentlemen, September 13, 2018. Photo by my friend, Alon Karpovsky.

It wasn't a cure, though, and Shadow still continued to decline, just at a slower rate. For the next 1-2/3 years, he needed 'round-the-clock care. It was stressful, but the way I looked at it, I was just repaying the devotion he'd always given to me, and the duties I undertook in his behalf made me treasure all the more every single one of the 600+ additional days of life that his medicine gave him.

Although I'm devastated to lose Shadow, I'm at least consoled that he got to pass away naturally at home with me there with him. I'm also very relieved that, thanks to some neighbors who loved Shadow, too, he was able to be laid to rest in his own back yard. (I could not possibly have dug the grave all by myself.)

As you can see, I'm not the only one who's mourning Shadow's loss...

Zigzag keeping vigil at his friend's grave. January 31, 2019.

I'm truly crushed he's gone. Of course, I still have Zigzag, but there's a huge hole in my heart now that no other dog could ever fill. Honestly, I don't know how I'm going to be able to carry on without him.

Farewell, my faithful friend and guardian angel. You really were, as I so often told you, the best dog in the whole wide world.

Shadow leads the way along a path that I, too, will soon follow.

I adopted Shadow on November 23, 2009 – 9 years ago today. He was already 3-1/2 then, so he's an old gentleman of going on 13 now. I'm lucky to still have him. He's actually been living on borrowed time since April of 2017. It was at that time that he was diagnosed with spinal stenosis, and he was already so crippled by then that I didn't think he had even a week left to live. But Shadow's new vet put him on a med that was literally life-saving, and here he is, still hanging on almost 12 dog-years later.

He does need help to get around, though. As you can see, he has a ramp to get up the front steps now, and sometimes his hindquarters collapse on him and I have to give him a boost to stand up again, but he still enjoys going for short walks, playing with his ball, hanging out in the front yard watching the world go by, and following me everywhere I go around the house, just like he always has. I'm so grateful for his company, every single second of every single day. :)

I've had Shadow four years this month. He's the most amazing companion! Smart as a whip, and loyal as can be. He's pretty good looking, too, isn't he!

Click image to view enlargement.

"The Dog is the singular Creation of Mankind that can be likened to the Divine."

( In Memoriam )

I still miss my Bucky, every minute of every day...

Shadow possesses classic German Shepherd Dog conformation, doesn't he?

click image to enlarge

Shadow possesses classic German Shepherd Dog conformation, doesn't he?

click image to enlarge

It may be worth noting that family history definitely played a part in my decision to adopt Shadow. Mother herself grew up with a jet-black German Shepherd Dog named "Pepi."

Bingham Canyon, Utah, sometime after 1924: