She's been a good dog...

[Mutchi]

We had the sweetest dog....she past. But at least she's not in pain anymore

 

[ChickenWhisperer101]

We had the sweetest dog....she past. But at least she's not in pain anymore View attachment 2612375

So sad, I know exactly how you feel.
Sorry for your loss

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

I‘ m sorry for you loss

 

[bhawk-23]

She sounds like a very very good dog. No matter how many times we go through the loss of a furry family member, it just never gets easier. I hope your next pup comes to you when you are ready because I'm sure they already are!

 

[AntiqueB]

Very good dogs go to very good people, because very good people are kind and understanding. They forge a relationship with their dog, which in turn makes a very good dog.

I love, more than I can say, the wisdom and love in your answer to your son. It is no wonder you had a very good dog. I suspect all your dogs will be very good dogs, just as your child will be a very good man.

 

[Coffee N Chickens]

Back when I was in college, I had a friend who was adopted. I made the mistake of referring to her biological parents as her real parents. She told me, "No, my real parents are the ones who love me and my real dad is the one who held me around the clock when I almost died. Rabbits breed. Those are my real parents."

I hope you and your real son find another dog soon. Life is less without one.

 

[microchick]

I am so very heartfelt sorry. It doesn't seem fair, but we just lost one of our cattle dogs this month so I know the pain you are all feeling.

A young boy is TOO young to know such heartache. to all of you.

I pray that God lets the right dog find you and your loving family very soon.

 

[Persassy]

I have a great dane who is 6 and I don't always show how much I love her but I live her with each bone in my body she is a beautiful dog but seems to be going down hill. She has probably saved my life multiple times. Your story is incredible

 

[microchick]

She's 6? She's an old lady then for a Dane. Proof of the love you have showed her that she has lived this long. God bless both of you with many more days before you are forced to say goodbye. Make every day count. I learned with our sweet angel Sidney how fast they can be taken from you.

 

[Coops Dad]

Belated update.

tl/dr version: Our replacement dog had an original owner, three subsequent owners who quickly returned her for reasons, plus a foster. She spent half of the 7 months after her original surrender in an isolation kennel. My wife is a sucker for lost causes. We got a great dog because of her soft heart. Pics below.

Full version: A while back, my wife jumped the gun again and texted me a picture of a shelter dog. I begged her not to do it but, when I came in off the road (I drive tractor trailers), we had a new family member. A Siberian Husky GSD mix named Luna.

She was very stoic and nonreactive to the point I thought there was something wrong with her, and she was very aggressive toward my wife's beagle- Bailey wasn't allowed to leave a room before Luna, enter a room before Luna, jump off the couch and run (Bailey had to get down slowly and walk), or express anything but deference to Luna. Luna would "correct" Bailey by grabbing her with a full-open mouth across the shoulders and pin Bailey to the floor while growling very loudly. She was good with people, though, and would tolerate ANYTHING- opening her mouth to examine her teeth, probing between her paw pads, looking deep into her ears, pushing her over onto her back, picking her up like a baby... she'd just submit with no resistance.

Fast forward to a month ago and Luna is a completely different dog. She's engaging, goofy, active, expressive, talkative and very affectionate. Luna and Bailey play together like besties, and Luna gets down on her knees and elbows to allow Bailey to fight on her level. She even lets Bailey "win" by rolling her onto her back and ripping out Luna's throat. It's the most ridiculous thing, especially given Luna's initial attitude.

Luna NEEDS to be in the same room as her people and grumbles and does the Husky talk if there's a door between you and her. I think this was the key to her heart- we leave the doors open and allow her to follow us wherever we go. We were told that she was crate trained, and she was. We were told it was best for her to be crated at night, so we did... for a while. Once I convinced my wife that a large dog allowed to range about at night is better protection than a dog in a box, Luna came out of her shell.

She just needed to be treated like family.

A week ago, I called the shelter where we got her because we needed records of her rabies vaccine and I got to talking with the volunteer. She remembered Luna and was initially worried the we would bring her back LIKE THE LAST THREE PEOPLE HAD DONE. It turns out that Luna's original owner surrendered her because he was moving and couldn't bring the dog. She stayed two weeks in the shelter in an isolation kennel because she was aggressive toward any kennel mate they put her with. Because of her eyes, she was adopted quickly the first time.

The adopter brought her back in three weeks because she was destructive and scratched the doors and peeled up carpet.

She lingered a month in the shelter before another person treated her like a library book, returning her in less than two weeks.

Luna spent another month- again in solitary- before adopter #3 took her home for a while. She was brought back to the shelter for being "too hard to handle and too disobedient".

That last return happened in mid-November of 2020. Luna spent the next 6 weeks in a solitary kennel before she was put on a euthanasia list due to her lack of adoptability; luckily for her, a couple decided to foster her to avoid the death sentence. She spent 6 weeks with them and their assessment was that she would do best in a home with no other pets, no kids and with owners that had previous experience with hard-headed dogs.

So, my wife brought her home. The shelter had waived all fees and expenses to help with Luna's adoptability but my wife made an appropriate donation because funding for shelters is heart-wrenchingly poor. Our discount dog, LOL.

So, Luna has her forever home. She's got family now, real family, and it shows in her behavior. She knows she's home for good.