Goodbye, Old Friend

Gifts come in unexpected packages and in unexplainable ways.....

One evening, some six years ago, Rick and I were returning home when we noticed a dog wondering aimlessly along Opossum Hollow Road about a quarter mile from our house. We stopped and called to the dog but he was extremely skittish and avoided our attempt to approach him, leaving us no choice but to continue on our way home.

The next morning my husband chuckled as he looked out our bedroom window. I asked him what was so amusing and he replied that the stray dog had chosen us. I peeked outside the bedroom window and saw the large blond dog from the previous day curled up sleeping in our flowerbed.

The dog was extremely shy, not allowing Rick or I to touch him. His coat was severely matted around his neck where a chain had been cutting into his neck. His thin body was peppered with what appeared to be buckshot pellets. Though he would not allow us to touch him he seemed to be set on staying.

His age and breed we will surely never know....but he resembled a Golden Retriever and his purple tongue gave me a clue that his genetic makeup included Chow. I was reluctant to turn him over to a shelter since he didn't appear to be highly adoptable. He had three strikes against him: his age, shyness, and Chow breeding. These traits would surely mean that he would be destined for the gas chamber. So he stayed....

As his time with us passed we quickly realized that he had a soft spot for children. He was quick to approach visiting children which surprised me due to his shyness...he appeared to actually enjoy their load playful behavior. He continued to resist interactions with adults. Even to the current time, large men in dark colored clothing are terrifying to him. Over several weeks he finally allowed human touch again and so the trust began to grow between us and the dog which was then known as "Gus."

Rick was content with him staying as long as he was an outside dog.....of course I had other plans :) It has always been important to me, that if I had a dog it was "part" of the family, which meant that it could socialize with every family member and be able to come into the house. So, while my husband was out of town I took Gus to the vet and had him neutered and brought him inside for crate training. He was house-broken within a few days. Who said old dogs can't learn new tricks! Everything about Gus seemed easy. It was as though he knew he had to "fit in" in order to stay....and he did.

Several years after arriving at our farm, our family grew with the arrival of Raven Emmaline. Gus was nothing more than a perfect introduction to dogs for Raven. His kind, patient behavior towards my daughter will never be forgotten. What a wonderful gift for a child to grow up with.

As the years passed, Gus's age started to show. He now spent his days lazily snoozing and occasionally barking at cars as they passed. His eye sight grew dimmer. We would often chuckle at "our old man" barking at the trash cans that were set out at the end of the street every Monday morning. His eyes were not the only body parts that were failing him...his back legs became progressively weaker over the years causing him incontinence. Though the inconvenience of cleaning up after Gus was difficult at times, I realized that having a good friend meant taking the good with the bad. Cleaning up after him and spending money on vet bills and arthritis medications was a small price to pay for what he offered us in friendship and companionship.

In the last week his behavior became more unpredictable and strange. I found him doing things that only an owner would know wasn't quite right....like sleeping in places that he never slept in. He was also having increasing trouble in getting up after his long naps and had now lost his bladder control. On August 18th I came home to find him in the exact location he was when I left for work. I attempted to help him stand to no avail. Rick and I talked and we decided to have Rick take him to the vet the next morning.

I awoke the next day, hoping to find that Gus had made the decision on his own to pass....I glanced out onto the porch to find Gus's bright eyes sparkling back at me. His body useless....I said my goodbyes to him that morning , patting him on the head and giving him a "cookie." With a heavy heart I went to work hoping that perhaps Rick would call me to tell me that the vet had better news than what I predicted.

The vet confirmed what I had feared, his body had given out before his beautiful spirit had. So Rick decided to give Gus the best gift he could give a friend, a peaceful passing. With Rick at his side, Gus slipped into a peaceful sleep and left this world.

Gus never asked anything of us, but kindness and in return he was able to learn to trust again. We believed that we were giving him a gift of a "retirement" home, but indeed he gave us the gift of unconditional love and companionship.

Though, I will never know where he came from or where he was going on his journey, I am so pleased that he chose us to spend his "retirement" years with. He will forever be remembered.

And so I got up this morning, like I do every morning to get ready for work....I paused and I stepped onto the porch and glanced at where Gus would great me....the porch was empty...such a strange, empty feeling.....Goodbye, old friend.....

THE DOGS WHO HAVE SHARED OUR LIVES

The dogs who've shared our lives.

In subtle ways they let us know

their spirit still survives.

Old habits still make us think

we hear a barking at the door.

Or step back when we drop

a tasty morsel on the floor.

Our feet still go around the place

the food dish used to be,

And, sometime, coming home at night,

we miss them terribly.

And although time may bring new friends

and a new food dish to fill,

That one place in our hearts

belongs to them....

and always will.

-Linda Barnes-