F
or a dog lover and owner there are wonderful days of playing, loving and enjoying our dogs.
Days of adventure, special events and special trips.
There are also sad days -- a day we get bad news, a day we say goodbye.
And inbetween lots of ordinary days that fill our lives with friendship and companionship and give us reassurance that we are all here for a reason.
Sharing our stories gives all of us a glimpse of the joy we feel, sometimes a sense of the sadness we bear, but always communicates how wonderful the dogs in our lives are, and how wonderful our friends are, too.
O
ctober 2003 I adopted a little guy from an adoption website. He had a very heart-wrenching story. Originally named Little Bit, he had been seriously injured in a large dog attack (I think in May) and had suffered a broken back. His owners took him to a clinic in Kelso and asked that he be put down. The vet felt that he might heal so took responsibility for him. He was nicknamed Flash as he learned to pull his little body "like a flash" around the clinic. He went home at night with a loving vet tech who posted info about him on website. Sadly, he never regained any control over his lower half but he never lost his amazing spirit and love of life. Very wisely, no photo ever ran on the website as people would have come out of the woodwork to adopt him, he was so adorable. I called about him as our family had rescued several toy poodles and we also had quite a bit of experience in special needs. I traveled north to pick him up. He was all of 3-4 pounds, pure white, but definitely not a poodle--I wasn't quite sure what he was. I had to stop on the way back at the first rest stop to check out my new guy and I just cried my eyes out. He was so horribly pitiful but so amazingly happy and loving. We fell head over heals in love (we are talking totally IN LOVE, here!!). I renamed him Leonardo Little Bird and brought him home to meet the family.
My husband and I live in Oregon and run a construction company. We are also a very large special needs adoptive family. Our poodles have been incredible in working with our eight children who came to us through adoption. The kids have a myriad of special needs such as cerebral palsy, deafness, diabetes, developmental delay, etc. These kids now range from 16-21. We also have five gloriously healthy and wonderful birth and Korean born adult kids who have also been deeply touched by our love of small special dogs. It has truly been amazing to watch a child who's never experienced love learn to tenderly care for an elderly, blind, deaf, "differently limbed", or otherwise fragile little dog. We know we have success when we find poodles curled up on children's beds!! In our many years of poodles, we have never had a child harm a dog in any way.
Anyway, nothing in the world prepared us for Leo. The first order of business was to get him a cart. K 9 Carts from Washington, were wonderful to work with and we had him all set up in two weeks time. It took him all of 30 seconds to figure out how to use the cart. He was hilarious as he ran up and down the driveway barking with excitement. He was extremely intelligent, cheerful, funny and dear. He spent a good part of every day exploring our big house and yard in his cart and the other part firmly planted in my lap. I belonged to him, after all, and he had to make sure no other dog got into his space. We became extremely close as I had to "run" his little bladder for him. He was so tiny that we never had any problems at all. In fact, he was the perfect puppy as he could go pee in any sink or toilet (a real plus at fancy hotels). Everywhere we went with him, people were just magically drawn to him and he loved the attention. The automatic doors would open for him at the Sheraton and he would just go wheeling in as if he owned the place!! He inspired everyone who met him. Everyone who met him also tried to guess what breed of dog he was--teacup poodle maybe mixed with Maltese or Bichon or ....who knew? Our vet assured us that he seemed to be about 5-7 years old, so we felt set for years of loving. And then fate stepped in.
I suddenly became very sick with a chronic illness in the summer of 2004 and our world very quickly changed. I went from being a child advocate who traveled to speaking engagements and fair hearings and active Board member as well as being Leo's "service-person" to him being mine. He and I spent all our time together, cuddled up in bed with me knitting and Leo holding down the ball of yarn. He buoyed my spirit so much. Every time I would have to travel for more tests, Leo would be there. He gave me such strength and hope. I have always been blessed with lots of optimism and he made certain that I enjoyed everyday. My husband also loved him so deeply. He slept in a beautiful antique baby bed next to our bed and was spoiled (in the best way) unmercifully. All the kids know how dearly I love them but then, of course, Leo always came first!!
This June, we returned from a little getaway with him. I had been feeling well and he had been his adorable, popular self. When we got back to our home, we noticed that he had a runny nose. Being so careful with him, we took him to the vet. We were absolutely devastated when our vet told us that he had a hugely enlarged heart and was most definitely NOT seven years old but probably twelve. We've dealt with a lot of heartache over the years with our choice of raising challenging children but we were totally numb with this news. Leo's health (even with meds and almost daily vet checks) quickly deteriorated and he passed away very gently in our arms on August 29th. We honestly thought the tears would never ever stop.
After two months, we decided we could not live our lives grieving so we made a unique decision for our family. We adopted a very well bred little long-haired Chihuahua puppy and named her Clara Bow. She is a total delight and has filled the house with laughter and love. Leo has his little shrine and the tears have slowed. My adult kids had the most lovely photo-portrait done of him for me and we can have it displayed in our room finally without sadness. It is that photo that brings me to write this (ridiculously) long note to you. With all my years of working with poodles and poodle mixes, I have never seen a dog that even closely resembled Leo. We've always believed he was just a one in million kind of guy. That is, until I came upon the name Bichon Bolognese on a website. My heart skipped a beat--there was a doggy that looked liked my Leo!! I spent this afternoon reading all I could about the breed and my research led me to you. I'm attaching some photos of Leo. Would you be kind enough to look at them and tell me if you think that's what he might have been. I'm also wondering, given where I adopted him, if he could have been born with you or someone you know.
Thank you so much for spending the time to read this story. I would imagine being a dog-person, you will understand. I would love to know more about your dogs and whether you ever have puppies.
-Shared by
Oregon, USA.
Editor's Note: If you've given thought to raising a pet with challenges Shelley reports, "I would be honored to answer any questions anyone ever has concerning caring for a paralyzed dog." Shelley would also be interested in your thoughts on what breed you think Leo may have been, or where he might have come from.
**WARNING** Portions of This First Text May be Risque. Read at Your Own Risk.
Underwear. Anonymous
L
ast night my nursing Bolo mama got a hold of one of my lace panties (I only have two
pair so they are a precious commodity--which doesn't mean I only have
two pair of underwear!). She is not necessarily an underwear sniffer --
that would be our male, and this pair was clean, I swear.
Anyway, somehow she got them over her head and walked a leg into them.
When I saw her strolling around before bedtime I just cracked up laughing.
Was laughing so hard I couldn't get the darn things off her before she
jumped into the nest for her late evening feeding.
Because of her
position in the nest, and everyone else's I managed to get them off her
head, but couldn't get her leg out.
When she was done with mama time and hopped out of the nest, she jumped
clear of the 'obstruction.' I had to get everybody out of bed to come
see what I was laughing at by this time. Here's a picture of the final result.
I'm wondering what she might do with a brassiere?!
"B
rrringgg" The school bell cried. That left me with a grin on my face. My class lined up as we started out the door. My mom was waiting in the car to pick me up and go to the airport. We were off to get my new puppy.
It was hard work to get my dog. I wrote a list telling my mom what a puppy needs. Any way it goes we both wanted a dog bad! My mom wanted the dog for breeding. I wanted the dog just as a companion of my own.
On the way to the airport I thought of what he would look like. I decided that it didn't matter. He was all mine. I was overjoyed when mom and I got to the airport. I started jumping up and down with joy. We headed into the building that my dog was in.
The man behind the counter said "How may I help you?"
My mom answered, "We came to pick up our new Bolognese."
The man behind the counter went to the back room and came out with a medium sized kennel. "Here you are," he said handing the crate to my mom who set it on a chair. "Please sign here ma'am."
As we headed out the door I heard a person yelling, "Ma'am you forgot your keys!"
My mom set down the crate walked back in to get her keys. For the second time we started for the car.
On the ride home it was quiet except the panting of my new dog Rembrandt. We got home and took him into my bathroom and opened the kennel door. After building up enough courage he came out. He was long and fluffy; his legs were covered in pee.
Day after day I played with him. Night after night he slept by my bed. Morning after morning I said good bye and went to school. Evening after evening he ate dinner with me. From now and forever he's my dog. He may need some more house training, but he is still all mine.
Editor's Note: The list was written when the writer was eight years old; the story was written a couple of years later. See Kail's list: What a Puppy Needs.
From a cat lover (and
lover of dogs who behave). Connecticut
M
y neighbors have some kind of white little fluffy yappy dogs. 5 of them!
So cute you could just eat them with a spoon, but they run in packs and
attack you like there's no tomorrow! The first time i met them, they were
loose, all coming down my street like a gang of little white fluffy angels.
I said hey little cuties....and they all starting jumping on me, snarling
and nipping! I luckily had my garden hose nearby and hosed the bejesus out
of them so they took off... It's kind of funny cuz they are soooo cute but
are a snarling mob if you make eye contact. :) You just can't read a book
by its cover!
However, funny enough, the dogs who run in the pack in my neighborhood look
closer to Bolognese than anything I've seen, LOL! They had a medium length
coat cut and just looked like little mops. I really don't think they are
Bolognese and Bolognese are so rare and the neighbor who owns these dog's
doesn't have a rare anything, LOL!
Editor's Note: We don't necessarily endorse hosing down small dogs! But this story gave us pause to reflect on how others may view our pets and what we can do to keep them from offending. Our own little darling's antics are often
translated to, "Isn't that cute!" in our minds, but may not be appreciated by everyone else the same way.
B
efore we started out on our spring break trip I asked my friends to guess which direction we would be heading…north, south, east, west. Cheerful emails bounced back and forth with some wondering if we may appear on their doorstep. We left home on a Bolognese Mecca and had a fabulous trip. With one visit we tripled the number of Bolognese we’d ever seen in our lives and had a great time with a lovely hostess, enjoying ourselves immensely. Here’s our story. . .
Imagine yourself in an animated film – 1,000 miles of black top stretches out before you waving at you to jump on board. Your trusty white auto grabs the pavement and races through two states carrying you and your one lucky child. You encounter everything from sunshine to a flurry of snow in the mountains, with the weather eventually dissolving into miles and miles of rain, then finally into the warmth of a friendly, sunny, expansive sky. The landscape ever changing smiles on your adventure and displays every beautiful feature it possesses. To pass the time your car is filled with interesting stories as book after book on tape is read by the CD player.
You come practically within walking distance of your destination and realize you’ve misplaced your note (hence the deepening background music change), the note with the house number that you have come so far to find. Panic! What to do? You scramble around the moving vehicle grabbing at paper as you also try and steer the car. The paper laughs and flies just out of reach (remember this is animation). Anxiety builds as you realize the ridiculousness of your situation. You reach the end of the road. You stop. The car turns around slowly, sadly. It thinks you will have to go home now. Tears drop from its headlight eyes as it stares at the long road ahead, mud puddles form in the dust of the country road beneath its wheels.
Peering out the bug spewed windshield you see a lovely woman standing at the end of a long driveway, a drive that appears to take you into an oasis of green. She is nothing less than your fairy godmother -- silver hair swirls her crown, an aura of joy shines out from within, as an ever widening smile dances on her lips. She beckons you towards her home. The little car perks up and pulls forward, gathering strength and hope with each rotation of the wheels. You enter a beautiful acre, a lush landscape full of blooming flowers, lighted Koi ponds, and pine trees mixed with cactus. You glance towards the front yard and laugh to finally see them! A dozen or more bouncing white bodies run back and forth chirping cheerful barks that could only come from the Bolognese breed. Joyful, playful, curious, mischievous, shy….count them …1…2…3…4…5……6……7……8……NINE!
As you reach out to hug your Bolo Godmother a realization grows on you, this is not an animated dream, this scene grows stronger until it is finally real. Laughter bubbles out of both of you, as nine dogs chase each other at your heels. Your daughter rushes to offer each one a specially purchased dog treat, all enjoyed with gusto.
You are finally here, California! Home of Lady Fatima's, your blessed Bolo Godmother!
Questions tumbled out of us from the moment we stepped from the car until all heads hit the pillow at night. How did you discover the Bolognese? How did you find your first dog? How many this, how many that, what do you use for this, where did you find that…? Patiently and generously Lady Fatima's Bolognese shared their wisdom and experience about breeding and raising dogs. I discovered there are even Saint Bernard’s in owner Sharon Todman's past!
After a good nights rest I was drawn out of my slumber to the sounds of birds singing, doves cooing and a happy rooster crowing down the road. I discovered Sharon was not tired of my questions and I started in on another round – this I repeated daily. We spent wonderful hours getting to know our hosts, Sharon and John, and each dog, including the non-bolognese, big brother, Buddy.
One of the bolos, Shadow, was a litter mate to our little bolo girl, and I loved seeing how he cocked his head and peered out of the corner of his eyes at me, just like her. I also noted a close family resemblance in his son, Toni, to my girl. I tried to figure out which bolo was most like mine and gave up. Each unique, each beautiful, each individual, each complete. Each loving to be petted and fawned over.
Sharon appraised her dogs directly and honestly, and we discussed at length the highlights of each, and what would make them more perfect – a great learning experience.
We loved watching the “Pied Piper of the Bolognese,” Mr. Todman, Sharon's husband, simply walk around. Their brood of Bolognese were drawn to him like magic, and followed him absolutely everywhere he went. They begged to ride in the car with when he left for town, and of course he always took one along, making sure each got their turn. We also watched them line up patiently and waited with very good manners when he brought out the summer sausage for treat time. No fighting, growling, pushing or shoving, but very eager. What well behaved bolos!
We were completely enthralled with Gina, a BEST-in-SHOW no less! She was absolutely exquisite, and a petite 7.5 lb. sweetheart who allowed our kids to play with her and pack her around practically from morning to midnight. Besides being a good playmate, Gina was fun to watch. Sharon brought out three of her dogs and put them on a show leash to demonstrate different walking gaits. Gina just danced on air with the prettiest little prance. Congrats to Lady Fatima's for breeding such a superb animal.
In the end I felt like I took a college course in Bolognese. If any of you get a chance to visit Lady Fatima's you will love their warm spirit and generous nature. They were incredibly informative about everything from breeding, grooming, showing, feeding tips and had great advice record keeping. They even pulled out her grooming tools so we got a hands-on look at everything. They are committed to the FCI Standard and it showed in the results they are getting with their breeding program. They also love the show ring – something that has totally scared me. Maybe I could be braver now,k we'll see.
I imagine we were much like puppies, following them around the entire time, except with a notebook and pen and writing absolutely everything down, not trusting any mid-life brain. And thank goodness there wasn’t a question too silly to ask. She gave me copies of everything you could dream of that might be helpful to me. Thank you so much!
Well, this adventure to Bolo Land has totally whetted my appetite to visit more of you! So, here's our concluding words . . . Warning! We may be coming to a town near you :-)
Sayadina, Havanese. Belgium
I
n 1989 I got my first havanese, Sayadina.
She was the love of my live.
I took her every where with me, she was my soul mate.
She had puppies twice, and of course I loved them, but not the same.
One of the puppies born in 1992, Quinten seemed to have fallen in love with me.
By the time he was 5 weeks old he would follow me around all the time, but I find him very demanding
He can not stand to be without me, ever.
If I run upstairs for 5 minutes, he's crying and weeping, this distresses me, so I hurry back downstairs or I take him with me.
I know I should not do that, but he wears me out.
When Sayadina died in 2004 I was heartbroken.
I found it hard to get out of bed, and cried every day for my loss.
I decided to get a new puppy.
I knew this would take my mind of my sorrow.
So I got Ziggy, 3 months later.
Ziggy was a delightful dog, but my guilt got the better of me.
I felt like I had deceived my Xayadina, and I found it hard to bound with him.
My mother, bless her, 77 and very wise, saw my distress and said to me, "Listen child, Ziggy was not born because Sayadina died.
He would have been born anyway, and he had to go and live with somebody, so why not you?"
She was so right!!
I started to look at Ziggy in a different way, of course it helps that he is related to Sayadina, but right now, I love him so much, I can't find fault with him.
He is perfect.
When I take him for walks he wants to say hello to every dog and every human, when he gets response from them he is over the moon.
When I get home he gets his favorite cuddly toy and greets me holding his toy, he always knows the toy he got last, that's the one he brings.
I never ever thought I would love a dog as much as Sayadina, I was wrong, and I try not to feel guilty about it.
-Shared by Martine.
Brugg, Belgium, where the oldest buildings date back to the 12th Century.
Noodles, Bolognese. USA
J
an 3
He is at the vet's tonight since the day was a miserable one for him.
I tried hand feeding him chicken, some brown rice and even tried a baby bottle to get him to take some water, to no avail.
Jan 14
What is so weird about this is how Noodles actually has some good days, where he eats well and even has some frisky moments.
And then I ask myself how did he develop all this cancer?
He was fed the better foods.
Should I have given him bottled water?
I guess we will never know...
Jan 15
I look at him lying at my feet now, and his eyes are so full of trust.
I hope that I do not fail him when his time comes.
Jan 16
Several days ago the vet told us that time was very short.
He has improved since then.
I do not want to get my hopes up.
I find myself more confused, and very emotional as I just try to keep up with daily chores.
I only want to be with Noodles and do everything he wants to do.
Today he wanted to be in the garden with me.
So it was in the 40's, but I bundled up in a jacket and did some garden cleaning while he sat in the
winter sun.
Jan 21 Sad Day.
Today we had to say good-bye to our beloved friend, Noodles.
Last night saw a dramatic turn for the worse.
He had not eaten all day and did not drink much either.
He seemed disoriented, restless and unable to find a comfortable position.
Today was worse, so we knew it was time.
Taking him to the vet was just heartrending.
I asked the vet if he thought it was the right thing at the right time and he told us that it was, no question.
He told us that that we could not let him suffer.
He asked if we needed more time with Noodles.
More time! What I would give to have a few more weeks with him!
And so within a minute, in which Noodles seemed to be in a deep sleep, and snoring it was over.
It seemed gentle and peaceful.
Afterwards I felt tremendous fatigue and still do.
I am not sure how I am going to get through the days to come. Big hugs and many tears.
-Shared by Margy
Editor's Note: Margy was supported through this difficult time by a veterinary student volunteer of the Pet Loss Hotline.
She shared that Noodles was more than special dog.
He told Margy when the phone and doorbell rang, alerted her to the teapot whistling, and to burglar and fire alarms.
When someone called her name, he came to get her.
To do this he received 3 years of training.
From there he learned to fetch a tissue when she sneezed, to pick up wet clothes which fell to the floor in the laundry room AND place them in the dryer.
Noodles was a brilliant example of the intelligence of the Bolognese breed, and how a dog can change a life.
Losing My Maltese. From emails....
W
e checked out a couple of books at the library about pets dying.
One by Mister Rogers and one for me.
I read a little bit of it at the library and then had to stop because I was crying.
In the chapter about what to do, they asked two questions, is your pet in pain and have they lost their dignity.
I trying to keep those two questions in mind as we go thru the next few days.
I'll try to read more of the book at home.
Anyway, keep us all in your prayers for strength and comfort.
I was lookin at my doggy tonite and started crying, Kail said, "Don't cry mama, I'm not crying, doggy's not crying."
Then she gave me a big hug.
From my sister: "...call me when you get back. I know that it is a hard decision.
One I don't envy.
My only concern and one I'd talk to the Dr. about is "Is doggy suffering or in lots of pain?"
I would worry about the quality of her life.
I know and she knows you Love her a lot.
Maybe she knows how hard this is for you and she is only hanging on for your sake.
Give her a Kiss for me.
I told the kitties that she is sick and to say a prayer for her."
Sad news for us: we lost our little dog.
Sunday night she was following me from room to room and limping, so I took her to the Dr
on Monday.
She was struggling to walk, did blood work but Doc said her results looked better than she did.
She was hypothermic and from the blood results we knew that she was borderline anemic.
She spent Tuesday in the hospital getting fluids and antiobiotics and being hand fed.
I went by the hospital and checked on her at lunch and she didn't even lift her little head.
As I left, the nurse admonished me to drive carefully, she could see I was going to cry my way back to work.
That evening I took her home and took the next day off to feed her, eyedropper in water, chicken broth, vitamin tonic and amoxycillin, with the greatest hope that she would gain some strength.
Kail pleaded to stay home with me, so I caved when she agreed to be my little helper as we nursed our doggy together.
The next day I went back to work, checking on her throughout the day.
She was feeling terrible at lunch--not to be comforted, a little better mood late afternoon, and that night as I listened to her troubled breathing
in the basket next to me in bed I realized she wasn't getting better.
About 3:00 am Kail crawled in next to me.
So, there I was, sandwiched between my girls.
My heart aching for one, and comforted by the other.
Doggy went to the vet for the last time on Friday.
Dad drove me and we brought her little body back home.
Dad helped me bury her in our yard.
I am desperately sad to lose my little buddy, she helped me through some hard times, always needing me, always loving me.
Glad to be my dog even when she couldn't be my baby anymore.
I've had enough life's experience to know this loss eventually will not be as painful as it is now, but by golly it hurts something awful.
I know with your tender heart you won't think me too silly for making over my dog.
She always made us laugh.
Thanks for the kind words on our doggy, I have thought this was just a nightmare, and remembered you feeling the same way when your husband died, then I feel bad that I am so tore up about a dog.
Wednesday, when I took the day off to nurse her I found myself holding her like a baby and giving her eyedroppers full of chicken broth, amoxycillin, vitamin tonic, water and strained meat hoping she'd get some strength back.
At the same time, feeling pangs of guilt knowing that somewhere in the world there was a child that needed this kind of attention.
There I was doting on a dog.
After we lost her, I started packing up all her stuff, dishes, crate, leash, etc., and called the Humane Society to see if we could donate her leftover food, shampoo and medicine.
They were delighted with the request.
Sunday after church, after the potluck, after school and MK delivery we took our little sack in.
We were both exhausted.
Kail had fallen asleep in the car and I was on the verge of being of zombie.
One of the volunteers helped me with the donation form and then we wandered around to see the pets, not to adopt, just to be around animals, touch them, comfort them, comfort us.
Kail wanted to see the kitties, then the doggies, then back to the kitties, and of course, one more time to look at the dogs -- each time passing by close enough to allow each one to lick her sleeve, her hand tucked carefully inside her coat cuff.
Then we discovered the puppy room and she begged to pet one.
We had to fill out a form to pet the puppies (!) which we did, I cried when the lady asked what happened to our old dog.
Thank goodness she was sympathetic.
The first puppy K wanted to get out was jumping up on the cage, so I explained the dog would jump on her just like that, she picked a quieter one, but not just one.
We got almost every puppy out of the cages.
When one had her pinned up against the wall I decided that was enough.
Kail was really still having fun, hugging each puppy and cooing, "I love you."
(I should add the term 'puppy' doesn't describe these young critters, I felt like I was in GIANT puppy land--could barely pick them up!).
When we finally went out to leave I asked to get a copy of our donation form.
Another family with two girls a little older than Kail was filling out the paper work to adopt a cat.
I listened absentmindely to their excitement as they talked about where the cat was going to sleep, the blanket the mom was going to make for the cat, what else they needed, etc.
When the volunteer came back with the copy of my receipt I had my hand on the door when the dad of this family bravely spoke to me and asked if our daughter was adopted.
"Yes," I said.
He wanted to know which adoption agency we used, if it was long, hard, or difficult, if we went to get her, "Can you adopt boys?" was his big question.
I assured him you could.
I told him our adoption agency was listed in the yellow pages.
Now I'm thinking I should have written down the agency's name, but we were almost out the door by then.
We left the building hopping over puddles in the parking lot, I helped Kail into the car and settled in myself.
Then it struck me what had just happened.
I know God put us there at that time to talk to that family to encourage them to add a child to their family.
So, maybe because of losing a little dog a child will find a family.
You never know what miracle God will make of misery.
As I struggled with my emotions I'd been trying to pray with Thanksgiving, "Thank you God for my dog, I'm so grateful she was my dog."
And then this little miracle, I feel so much better.
I still cry, but there is also hope there, and peace, too.
We bought a dog magazine at the grocery store tonight, and I figure this time next year, there'll be a new puppy in our lives.
In the meantime, we can always pet kitties at my sister's house!
Here's the post script -- It wasn't a year before there was a new dog in our lives -- it was a few months -- a great search, many phone calls and lots of emails and then we set our hearts on a little Bolognese girl.
She arrived all full of energy and kisses.
A clever girl who is still chasing new adventures with our family.
"I talked to your Mom yesterday morning.
She told me about you smuggling a little critter into the hospital under your coat after your dad's surgery.
We decided that you are the only one who could get away with it."
