How do you Mend a Broken Heart? ***Hello Katie***

[JetBlack]

Take some time and remember the greatest things, you hold in your heart and mind, about that dog.

The look on Spook's face when you came home and opened the door. The way he cocked his ears when you picked up the leash (no matter how quietly you did it). The stretch/greeting he gave, first thing in the morning. The way he'd sometimes be looking over his shoulder, at you and then walk his head into the door frame. The time he tried to carry the stick through the doorway.

Think back on the greatest things he did, that warmed your heart. If you ever sat on the floor and cried and he came over to see what was wrong. If he brought you a toy, when he could tell you were sad.

Remember how much he loved you and how much you loved him. No dog can be that dog or replace him, that's why God only gave you one.

Like the little boy said:

People have to live a long time because we have to spend years learning how to love people unconditionally. How to be happy when we meet strangers and how to be kind to everyone.

Dogs are born knowing how to do all that, so they don't have to live as long.

These stupid threads make me cry. Why do I read them?

I'm so sorry for your loss. I don't know that there's any hope for feeling better. You can only feel less bad.

My parents put my dog to sleep, while I was at school. He had bitten a girl, on the face, while she was accidentally hurting him. I still cry when I think about him. He was such a great dog, like all Golden Retrievers.

That was 30 years ago. I hope Spook was good enough that you still ache when you think of him, in 30 years. I truly hope you miss him that much. I don't want more torment for you. I just know every dog gets into your heart in it's own way and when it's gone, it leaves a hole as big as it's presence was.

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
I can't believe you hated Trouble!! He's got to be one of the cutest!

I think my Lucy has been reading your past posts. I found her in the washer the other day buried under a pile of clothes. She's been through a rescue, lost one eye, and now in the washer just about to be turned on. How many lifes does she have left!!

He wasn't Bella. But it has become clear that she sent him to me. He appeared out of the blue one day, and never left my side. And MAN does he get into trouble.

 

[CoyoteMagic]

We are in the waiting phase

I have no patience! I keep telling myself they are dealing with the effects of a hurricane. I do know(cuz it was part of a forwarded email) that someone within the origanzation said "Let's move forward with this"!!!

.

They have been in contact with my vet to get a reference from them.

We are working with another organization that is going to help get her to us! We are planning for the weekend of July 24th. We will drive to around the Montgomery, AL area to meet them.

She will be trained using sign language. I will have to use signs that will be easy for me and her to remember. Some of the ALS signs kind of run together and with my dyslexia I need them to be as clear as possible. No, come, watch me, quiet, sit and down are pretty easy in AKC signs. I'm thinking of the "hook'em horns" aka "hang loose" signs for Yes aka Good Girl!

One of the biggest things I'll be working on is de-senstizing(sp?) her to touch and being startled. Basicly getting her to know that it is ok when something touches her when she is asleep or when she doesn't see it coming. Giving lots of goodies, making something good instead of scary.

As my Service Dog, she really doesn't need her sense of hearing. The important thing is sense of smell and her responce to when I do get sick. One of the techniques is to make her very aware of what my breath smells like normally. The smell of your breath actually changes when you are sick. Lots of up close and eye contact work. Lurchie used to yell at me all the time, "What did you just tell Spook?!!" I could just shift my eyes and she would follow or a slight nod of the head, maybe even a finger point. FYI this is something that only domestic dogs can do. Primates nor wild canines including wolves can respond to a finger point. Spook was to go to Duke Universtiy in August for intellegence testing in a research project they are working on. Oh well, they won't get to meet my girl. May be Lila will go in a few years!!

I need to train her to go get help. This will include opening the door which will have a special handle. I had the biggest problem with this in training Spook. She didn't want to leave my side. She will also be trained to hit a panic button. The button dials 911 and tells them that the button was pushed by a Service Dog and that there is a medical emergency. When medic comes, she will have to open the door, bring them to me, and lay down behind me but out of medics way. She will then have to follow the stretcher into the ambulance and be out of the way.

Lots and lots of work to be done. But it's going to be tons of fun!!

 

[debilorrah]

The sign for nightime is a good one for her to go lay down for the night too!!! I love ASL. I am not fluent, but I can get by if I make sure to tell the signer to go slow. OOO another good one for her to slow down!!!!

 

[JetBlack]

Quote:
That puppy's name should be....

Diesel.

 

[BlackBart]

I lost my beloved Red Heeler, Meggie. She was my right arm. It was a very sad time, a very unhappy house, lots of tears. A dark cloud.
For some reason I looked on the SPCA website and there was a Red Heeler who looked just like Meggie.
I brought her home a week after Meggie died. That is how I mended my broken heart. She wasn't a replacement, she needed a home, I needed a dog.
It is like it was meant to be, fate she was up for adoption.

It is creepy how much she is like my Meggie, almost like it is a reincarnation.
There is something about Heelers, they latch onto your heart, they become part of you.

 

[Kansaseq]

Oh, Coyote,
I'm so sorry for the grief you are still feeling, and will continue to feel. As someone who has loved and lost 4 dogs (and 4 cats) in my 41 years, time is the only thing that seems to lessen the pain; that, and having other animals to love. I highly recommend having more than one at at time, though, so when you DO lose one, you are not left without another to help ease the pain. I am so very lucky to be a vet tech and work with wonderful people who feel as I do, and will let me talk and cry about it if I need to. We all lean on each other because we truly do understand what it's like.
It sounds like you gave Spook a wonderful home, and that she is continuing to watch over you, even though she's gone to the Rainbow Bridge. I wish you good luck in getting your Lady Blue/Lila home, and THANK YOU for adopting a dog in need

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Quote:
That puppy's name should be....

Diesel.

Why Diesel? She's a little girl

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Quote:
I am actually righting a rememberance book about Spook. Memories some with pictures. Things people have said about her since she passed. Even my vet said she was one of a kind! My neice begging me not to let her die but knowng that we couldn't let her hurt. Spook read peoples energies clearly. She loved Courtney so much and would start to bark 5 minutes be for my sister would pull up in front of the house with Courtney in the car.

There will be a part that is my husbands story of the first time he saw Spook. He tells the story the same way everytme.---He was working nights. I had found Spook when he was sleeping. The day before I had fourn 5 other puppies. different breeds. I climbed into bed to wake him up and tell him that dinner was ready. He says I slid out of bed quickly and said, "can I have a puppy" He thought I had picked one of the ones I found the day before. He walked out onto the back porch and saw Spook at the bottom. and had this face

He said he knew then he was done for!

I miss my old hounddog Captian. He the first dog I remember. He was 15 when he died. Mom would come home from work and he would start to barking Mom bark Mom bark. It was different for my grandmother, Mommom, mommom. Howled at fire trucks or if someone sang, lol He died when I was a freshman in college, 30 years ago. My sister inlaw was just saying that loosing Spook was like loosing Captian all over again. They were both such a part of our families.

Lila will not replace Spook. She is her own person/dog. It's a new adventure for both of us

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Quote:
Is that the one where right arm bent at the elbow, hand pointing up, left elbow bent, hand to right elbow, then right hand folds down on to left arm?