Our beloved dog Scout

[Larry Kart]

had to be put down yesterday -- age 9, cancer. She was a sweetheart. Part Corgi, part Dalmation, part Theda Bara (those eyes).

[Teasing the Korean]

So sorry.  Pets are truly family members.  

[JSngry]

Never easy to have to do that. Here's hoping that a new one comes along and a new story begins.

[sonnymax]

Very sorry for your loss, Larry. What a loving companion she must have been.

[clifford_thornton]

so sorry to hear this, Larry. My condolences.

[ghost of miles]

Larry, I am so sorry to hear this.  My cat Amelie died quite suddenly this spring at the age of 14 and I was emotionally crushed for weeks afterward... I still think about her and miss her every day.  Thank you for sharing the photo of Scout--what a beautiful dog.  

[Brad]

Sorry to hear that. Back in 2016 we had to put to sleep — really hate that term — one of our cats. It’s always a terrible experience. Had to do it with my late Mother’s cat this year. She had gone blind and just went downhill fast. I still feel awful. The one sure thing is none of us are around forever. 

[mjzee]

Sorry to hear that, Larry; a true loss.  Our golden retriever died last year age 10 from cancer.  We knew all along that Goldens are prone to cancer, with lifespans from 8-12 years.

[Chuck Nessa]

I remember sitting up all night when our last dog (Maggie) died. This stuff sticks with you.

 

[Larry Kart]

1 hour ago, Brad said:

Sorry to hear that. Back in 2016 we had to put to sleep — really hate that term — one of our cats. It’s always a terrible experience. Had to do it with my late Mother’s cat this year. She had gone blind and just went downhill fast. I still feel awful. The one sure thing is none of us are around forever. 

Had to do the same thing with my beloved cat Baby about a month ago. He was about 14.

[Dan Gould]

Sorry to hear this Larry. I regard it as the cost of the unconditional love we get from our animal companions: the knowledge that their time will come up sooner than yours and you have to make the decision to ease their suffering and let them go. 

Our Weimaraner Gracie was put down in March, at the age of 14 or so. It was a decision made easier by the fact that the vet (we used a service that does euthanasia at home) took no time at all to judge that her facial lumps and copious, funky drool that had developed only in the prior ten days or so was in fact lymphoma. We're fortunate King adjusted quite easily so we didn't need to find him a new companion.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

So sorry to hear this Larry. It's tough to lose your dog. It's like you lost a best buddy.

Our golden retriever Auggie just turned 10 and he is slowing down pretty dramatically. We're really not looking forward to having to put this guy down. He's such a great dog.

[JSngry]

We got lucky with Josh, our Golden, he lived to be a month or so short of 15 and his decline was slow and natural. Even though he ended up sleeping most of the time, when he was awake, he was still loving and "playful". It wasn't until the last few days that he reached the pint where he couldn't get up to urinate that we realized that it ws time to let him go, so we put the top down on the convertible, propped him up and the back seat, drove him around his neighborhood (and it was very much his, everybody knew him and loved his goofy ass) and took him to he vet to say goodbye. He had a smile on his face, but it sure seemed like he knew what we knew, and was ok with it. We stayed with him until he went back to sleep and he looked like he had been looking for most of the last year or so. Only this time...

We loved that dog. Our kids grew up with him, into adulthood, Josh was always there and after they moved out, he was happy to see them when they returned. But we all knew it was time to let him go, he had no quality of life ahead of him, and he deserved to go with dignity.

I was in no hurry to get a new dog, but my wife felt differently. So after a few months, we got this rescue dog who is....a trip. Brenda took to her immediately. It took - it's taking - me a bit longer. Totally different personality. But i the end, once they know you are taking care of them and aren't there to abuse or otherwise go wild on them (this one was initially...feral-ish, which could be amazing at times, irritating as fuck at others), the mutual trust begins and that eventually becomes love. When it gets to where you can talk to them and they understand, that's when you have a serious relationship. That's when it's fun again.

[Dub Modal]

1 minute ago, JSngry said:

When it gets to where you can talk to them and they understand, that's when you have a serious relationship. That's when it's fun again.

And when they "talk" to you, too. Our husky throws some looks and other nonverbal cues that are so communicative that he may as well be speaking. 

Condolences to Larry. She indeed looks like a sweetheart. 

[Larry Kart]

Her eyes looked into our souls and vice versa, or so it seemed.

[Clunky]

very sorry to hear of your loss. I know how much my dogs mean to me and my family - never easy 

 

[Jason Bivins]

So sorry for your loss, Larry. It's the worst.

[HutchFan]

That's terrible news, Larry.  I'm so sorry.  

 

[Ed S]

I love dogs and understand what you are going through.

Scout was a beautiful dog and really did look like a sweetheart.  I love her colors with the white chest and the trace of white on her ears and the end of her tail.

Having experienced the best of what dogs can bring into one's life at the worst and best of times in one's own personal life, you have my sympathy and best wishes. You really nailed it when you commented about how she could look right into your soul and vice versa.  No judgement, no back-stories, no complicating circumstances - just pure and unconditional love - going both ways.

Dogs can bring so much to and enrich our lives, and we to theirs.  When the time is right, if ever it is, I hope you are able to bring another dog into your life.  If not, you will always have your memories of Scout - and any other dogs who have been part of your life with you forever.

[Larry Kart]

She was a mess when we adopted her from PAWS Chicago. She came from Oklahoma in the aftermath of tornadoes they had there. She was overweight and scraggly, but my wife, who has long experience with dogs (mostly pugs), saw into her soul and said "She's the one." She was. We slimmed her down to her proper weight, fed her good food, groomed her regularly, walked her a lot, talked to her a lot and and she soaked it all up -- a love sponge my wife called her. PAWS said she was an Austrian Cattle Dog; we had a DNA test done just for the hell of it, and it came back on the maternal side: Corgi (she was somewhat on the squat side for her size), Dalmatian ( the white chest and white paws), and Bull Terrier. On the paternal side some Shepherd.

[Shrdlu]

I'm very sorry to hear this, Larry. The picture shows how lovely she was. It's like losing a family member.

I still remember having to put down our German shepherd, Lisa. She was 9 and her back legs went. She was otherwise fine, but she was having trouble getting around. My older son drove us to the vet. He was so upset that I had to drive us home.

Right now, I have a delightful little dog who is a cross between a beagle and a staffy. She has the pointy snout of a beagle but the coat (almost black) and her white shirt front are pure staffy. Super friendly, and 3 this month. I got her, at 8 months, from a young couple who were moving to an apartment where they could not have her. The lady looked very sad to be parting with her. She is a wonderful companion - I live on my own now.

Once again, my condolences.

You will enjoy this: Takis's Shelter in Crete. There are hundreds of top quality videos. Takis is an ex DJ who now has a huge shelter with over 400 dogs, all available to be adopted. His dogs go to several countries in Europe. He speaks English fluently. Amazing man and lovely dogs. I watch his videos every day. Some great rescues.

[Larry Kart]

Thanks for your kind thoughts.

[soulpope]

This is tough .... lost half a decade ago our black lab girl to cancer only 6 years of age and still mourn when thinking of her ....

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

I'm really sorry to hear about your, Larry, and others' losses. We've had two cats and three dogs. Henry, the present one, is coming up to eleven.

I've been lucky about all our animals' deaths so far. Muff, our second cat, died soon after her kittens were born. She was a stray who just arrived and stayed, got on well with our first, Golly, a super-intelligent and occasionally sarcastic black cat. But Muff was thick as two short planks and got run over crossing the road outside, when I was at work.

Golly lived until she was nineteen! That was in 1991 and again, I was at work, so Sarah buried her in the grounds by the flats. We had our first, and second dogs by then. The first was Toby, a fawn pug. The second was Blossom, a Peke, whose aged owner had died. Toby, being a pug, would pugarun like crazy around the flat, often provoked by Golly, who'd jump on the phone table in the hall and bop him every time he passed.

Toby was thirteen when he died, in January 1993. I was in the Gambia at the time. Blossom died on 31 Aug 1997, and we don't know how old she was. But I was at home for that.

Here's a pic of Henry a few years ago.

 

MG

 

[Shrdlu]

Henry looks lovely.

I would post a pic of mine, but there is a size limit for files and I don't know how to get around it. How is it done?