Part of us died on Monday. Beloved companion and protector Walt was put to sleep after his battle with age and bad hips finally caught up with him this weekend. Since he was a pup, he was the kind of dog that had a personality that always lit up the place he was at. His love of travel was only second to his obsession for retrieving...yes he was a tried an true yellow lab. One of Walts favorite activities was diving for rocks or anything under water he could find. He was inseperable from both Mark and Shawn and frequent trips to the river was just the thing for all.
As Walt got older, you could see his desire to be with Lori and I was getting to a be a problem. He was very vocal about being left at home and could be seen often hanging with us at the local coffee shop. There were few dogs or cats that Walt didnt like. He will be sorely missed,
A couple years ago, Lori and moved from our motorcycle to a trailer. Partly as we knew Walt was getting older and mostly because we wanted him around us as he wanted to be with us, I remember the many times as soon as the keys were picked up, he would bolt out the door taking out anything or anyone in his way. He would do laps around the truck till I opened the door and he would jump from wherever he was standing usually hitting the door or truck and falling down, He will be missed.
Last spring, the reality of his age really hit me in the stomach like I was getting socked. He could not navigate the rocks and would not swim. This site sickened me as the Walt we had been annoyed with over the years by his tireless desire to make anyone in his reach happy by bringing them a stick. I have come to associate our beach property with the many lives of both people and pets that have come and gone from this place. Why Walt and why now? It doesn't seem fair that God always takes the good ones way too early even if they lived a long life here on earth. We are never happy or seem ready to accept the reality of life and death. They will all be missed.
Last month we took Walt on one final vacation. I knew from the start, it may kill him as he was slowing quickly. He still managed to hold his head high and search the roads for us even though his sight was nearly gone. We had to find a vet in Canada to help him and they gave us some great joint paint pills that helped him alot. As we neared the end of the trip, we could tell poor Walt was too worn out to do much more and was content to sit and smell the air. He faded quickly after returning home and began to have balance problems. A couple weeks ago we came to grips with the inevitable and I tried to prepare myself for the trip to town that one last time. I think he heard us and got quite a bit better. We were relieved. It was for not as this last weekend, he was now suffering and I needed to man up and get on with my responsibility as a pet owner and friend, He didnt deserve to go out with anything less that holding his head up, making friends even in those last few breaths. Even the vet was emotional as Walt layed in my arms taking a last few peaceful breaths on this earth for now. I know his spirit will return soon and a dog will 'pick' us to help him grow up to be the same or better dog than Walt. He will be missed.
One last thought in my obituary for my companion. I feared the final act more than anything on earth. When the decision was made, there are three distinct acts that I had to complete. The hardest for me was to make the call to the vet. This was the moment of reality. I was commited to following through now. Then I sat and watched the clock waiting for the time to take the drive. Walt enjoyed his final ride and seemed relaxed as he almost knew it was his last. I dont know, maybe I wanted him to be ok with what I was doing to him. He walked in mostly on his own and layed with me on the floor as the sedative wagiven. We said our goodbyes and asked him to say hi to a few pets who have already gone to 'dog heaven' He seemed to understand as his eyes slowly closed and his pain went away. A calm came over me and I actually felt ok. Dont mistake what I mean, I still have moments I lose my composure, but it was the right thing to do and probably should have been done sooner.
He is missed!
Shawn said it best after we loaded up heading home. I was getting a little cocky on my bike. I went down a hill and had to turn at an angle. The ground gave a little and I stopped and then managed to bury the bike. Shawn came and got it out for me and made sure I knew he had helped!
