End of an era, Fletcher's turn.

[The Reality Salesman01]

Wow Apo, you are human! I guess I kinda got an image of you being a mixture of something somewhere between Spock and that Russian from Rocky IV (before he got his ass whipped). I hope you get to feeling better and into a place that allows a furry sidekick. They really are the best listeners.

[Whateverist]

You have my sincerest sympathies, whateverist.


A few years ago, around the time of my last suicide attempt, my therapist arranged for her, my sisters and I to get together for a session, to discuss my constant desire to end my life. One of my sisters tried to explain to me how she thought it would feel to lose me by analogizing it to losing a dog, that the companion you expected to be there would just be, "missing," for lack of a better word. And even now, though I think my family no longer loves or cares about me, as much as I'd like to think ill of that analogy, to be spiteful, I cannot. I knew the comfort of a canine companion before I knew how to walk or speak. Dogs were an inseparable part of my life growing up. One of the two things I resented about the place I'm currently living is that you cannot ordinarily have a dog. (I probably could now, with a doctor's note and such, but I can't even take care of myself, so I wouldn't want to be responsible for neglecting the needs of a pet.) All the same, my sisters have continued to have dogs as pets, and one of the two is very active in dog showing. In earlier years, I'd often stop by the house of one sister. I'd pretend I stopped by to spend time with my sister, but that was really a lie and I knew it. I went to spend time with the dogs.

I hope you are managing and that you are doing well, all things considered. Blessings and peace to you.

Careful you guys, if the theists catch us going on about our dogs they'll begin to question our estrangement from all morality and human feeling. You guys have been great. Thank you Apo for the personal touch. I really think you could argue that you not only need a service dog but you might even need some back up to make sure the dog is doing okay. That way you'd be able to bring him or her more places too. (My suspicion is that caring for the dog would translate into caring better for yourself as well. Fletcher sure got me out on more walks than I would ever have done without him.)

I had a walk with the youngster, Heidi Rose, this afternoon. What a contrast. She is the most powerful dog I've ever owned. It takes a brisk walk while alternately throwing the ball out into the bay or out over a hill to give her anything close to a challenging workout. I don't wait for her while she is swimming out or swimming in either. Nothing I can physically do is at all taxing for her. She is wicked smart too. But for pure mind games, I haven't met another dog like Fletcher. He is my lifetime dog, but she has a clear shot at winning the title eventually just as Fletcher did after Sophie died. Life goes on .. until it doesn't. (We're kind of attached to you now too, Apo. Please don't cut out any sooner than you have to!)

[The Reality Salesman01]

Here,here!

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My dog is only 4 years old, and he's the laziest son of a bitch in the world. I can't get to the end of the street these days before he starts yawning and laying down at every pause. Mastiffs are the laziest dogs in the world! Bless your heart for all the effort you must have had to put in to the energetic breeds your dogs appear to be!

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This is just a bonus

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I was minimizing AF on the laptop in the kitchen, and my girlfriend must have left this window up when she was shopping earlier. I figured if there was any chance that this could cheer you up, I needed to share it. So, here ya go!

http://www.fredericks.com/Jessica_Lace_B...e&all1=all Here's the link in case you're interested in buying whatever the hell she was buying...LOL.

[Lemonvariable72]

My old dog Fletcher, whose mug graces my avatar pic, is ready to check out. He has stopped eating anything, is breathing hard and is too weak to walk more than 10 or 20 faltering feet. But I took him for a ride in the wheelbarrow today and he held his head up on the way and for a while once we got there. I either had to have the vet come today to put him down or wait until Tuesday, after our Labor day holiday. I'm glad to know that decision is unavailable this weekend. But it is time to say good bye before his difficulty breathing causes him to die of suffocation. That would not be a nice way to go.





A week ago he could still walk around the block to the park on his own and make it down to the creek for a soak.



He is laying on the couch beside me now and it feels good to bask in his company a little longer. The last dog I put down was 15 and a half. Losing Sophie was like losing a dutiful daughter. She was proud to follow every command and even enforced the rules with new dogs that came into our home. Fletcher is very different. He is his own dog. Has never understood the concept of a command. Ever since Lia's aunt and uncle brought him home as a pup when they were in their early 80's (at our suggestion), I think Fletcher had the idea that a command was an invitation for oppositional play. He is 14 years, 2 months old. More would have been nice, but it is all a bloody miracle, in the non-religious sense of course.

What has made his rogue behavior acceptable is his social grace and confident but benign temperament. He is affectionate, but he's a giver. You can only pet him a little and he'll grab your hand and try to wash your freckles off with his tongue. My god but I'll miss his foot baths. He would wash between every toe and make my feet just tingle after a long walk. He is the kind of dog that makes you proud to be his friend and I'm sure he has changed the way I will interact with other dogs from now on. He has also been one hell of an example of how to approach life on your own terms and to revel in every moment. He'll be missed but I've learned too much from him to let that get me down.

You make me what to cry, I know exactly what your going through and went through with my own dog, I could bear to be there when they put him down. He was a smart too, whenever me or my mother were making a sandwich he use to walk up behind us as quitely as he could and then start barking like the house was on fire in hopes we get scared and drop meat. he also used to play in the water dish.

[Angrboda]

Wow Apo, you are human! I guess I kinda got an image of you being a mixture of something somewhere between Spock and that Russian from Rocky IV (before he got his ass whipped).

I am glad that this thread has granted you the opportunity to relieve yourself of some illusions about me.

[Lemonvariable72]

Wow Apo, you are human! I guess I kinda got an image of you being a mixture of something somewhere between Spock and that Russian from Rocky IV (before he got his ass whipped).

I am glad that this thread has granted you the opportunity to relieve yourself of some illusions about me.

That is now my background

[Minimalist]

Yeah. When a dog won't eat bacon it's time to say goodbye.

Actually this would be a good test for my kids to use with me one day. When daddy won't eat some bacon you offer him just put the old boy down.

I've had a lot of reasons to think about this a lot over the last couple of years. I don't want to waste away like my father. I hope that one of my friends will bring me the means to end it while I still have the ability to act - while I still have a shred of human dignity.

Sorry for the macabre derail.

That would be a great discussion to have, C/D. But not in this thread.

[Mystical]

ohh Whateverist. I admire you and the life you gave that dog. If I end up reincarnated into a dog I hope it would be one of your dogs I can't tell you your feelings will go away; its been five years and I think about my Teddy Bear every day.. He lived in the mountains of Colorado chasing deer, the plains of Kansas gettin sprayed by skunks with a giant smile on his face as I bathed him in tomato sauce, dug holes into the desert backyard in New Mexico to stay cool while his buddy the weiner dog slept on top of him, and he died in my arms. I will always be thankful for the love he gave me when I needed it the most.. They're precious. Fletcher's precious, but I've come to learn our dogs become a reflection of ourselves..
Sorry I'm all sappy I've come to love you and your dogs!

here's to good dogs and the people who love them

[Faith No More]

Sorry about your loss, whateverist. Dogs truly are man's best friend. People can be judgemental and selfish, but a dog is there for you through thick and thin.

At least he had a full life, though. We had to put one of our dogs down at age 7, and that was much harder than when I lost the other one to old age.

[Whateverist]

They're precious. Fletcher's precious, but I've come to learn our dogs become a reflection of ourselves.

Funny but I always tell people this when they lose a dog if they express reluctance to get another. I'm not sure dogs reflect ourselves so much as they just become most fully what they can be. They need a good relationship and some of us need a good relationship with a nonhuman species. It's a perfect match.

You are a sweet one, Mrs. Wabbit.

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Wow Apo, you are human! I guess I kinda got an image of you being a mixture of something somewhere between Spock and that Russian from Rocky IV (before he got his ass whipped).

I am glad that this thread has granted you the opportunity to relieve yourself of some illusions about me.

I believe this would be a great time to point out any flaws you may have noticed in any of Apo's arguments. Or present your own argument and I'm sure she'll give you some knife sharp feedback.