Gone but not forgotten

[Elk Hunter]

Just one year ago today we had to put "Star" down. Not a day goes by that I don't think of her and "Lucy" another Britt that we lost a couple of years earlier. "Star" was three months past sixteen, a long life for a Britt. I find myself dreaming of them occasionally. Some say it is time for another dog but the wife and I like to travel and I don't like asking the kids to watch my dogs. And another one might outlive me. Damn, how I miss them.

[edgarspencer]

I feel your pain, Dennis. I will always have a dog, as long as they will have me. The devotion we get in return for bringing them home is not something that can be weighed against the pain when they pass. It's just the way things are, and God made dogs just about perfect anyway.

[Phil C]

Very well stated. I think I will always have a dog or two. Life is too shot not to have a dog be part of it. Dennis I am painfully aware of the feeling of loss you have. I once thought when I lost my dog Jules, not another.
Once I got another dog I immediately knew that it was the right thing to do. After a few hunts I made new memories that I wouldn't trade anything for.

[C.O.B.]

Gunner has been gone for three years now and I miss him every day. He rests next to his mother in the backyard and I just spoke to them this am when I picked up some fallen branches.

Daisy is 13 and slowing down. All to soon she will be resting with the other four. Yes I have buried four dogs in the 12 years I have lived here. A new addition will come the end of April and I'm looking forward to it. He will most likely be the last dog I get but I would like to get a second one in another year or so just to have a pair of companions.

I couldn't imagine life without a dog. They give so much and ask so little in return. The are the definition of unconditional love.

[Kurt Sauers]

Ah,dogs. My grampa had labs. My dad had labs. I had labs. I gave up hunting when my last one died. I think it's been 20 years. It doesn't seem that long. My youngest daughter now has a 14 month old pup. The first time i took her for a run she came nose to nose with a possum. I found myself yelling the name of my last dog a half dozen times before I realized what i was doing. I couldn't believe it. That dogs been gone 20 years. That pup has led me here. I now have 3 Parkers and am planning on kidnapping my daughter's lab for some pheasant hunting this fall. I do a lot of all night driving and find myself thinking of dogs and Parkers. Long lost memories of dogs long gone just pop up out of nowhere. Some great memories but still heartbreaking even after all these years.

[Bob Brown]

I share your pain of losing a canine family member. About 3 months ago my yellow lab Katie woke up thirsty and a bit off. I took her to the vet and her blood sugar was off the charts. A couple of sets of blood work and she was diagnosed as diabetic. The Vet suggested I leave her with him while he gave her injections of insulin and monitored her blood sugar to determine the daily amount she needed to control it. Twice daily injections for the rest of her life, but he said she should have a fairly normal life once under control. You do what you have to. It didn't work out that way. For three days and nights he gave her insulin and retested every two hours. No amount would bring her blood sugar down to even a measurable amount. The third day and night was trying the human version which can sometimes work when the canine version won't. Still off the monitor's scale. He said the answer had to be a tumor that was completely disrupting the insulin process. The only chance would be a 8 hour drive to a vet that could do the operation to find and remove the tumor, but I think both of us knew she was too weak to survive the drive, much less the operation. I had to let her go. Katie loved her ducks, but she was a grouse freak! The season for both opened 5 days ago, but I haven't seriously thought about picking up a licence yet. I guess I never realized how much of the enjoyment of bird hunting comes from the partnership with the dogs.

[C.O.B.]

Bob I had a GSP that was diabetic. Tara required two shots a day and once we got her regulated it wasn't to bad BUT getting it figured out was a trick and expensive. She endured this for several years including the side effects of diabetes, blindness and loss of hearing. She slipped away three years ago.