For the love of Dogs - My life is meaningless without them

On a warm evening in July, my mom called me over to her house to help her. Her female Shetland Sheepdog ( Dolly), was four days overdue and had just went into labor. When I had arrived, three puppies had already been born, then I helped her have two more. Thankfully all were born were healthy and alive, we had four boys and one girl. We decided to name them; Nemo (When he tried to walk he looked like he was swimming), Copenhagen (loved the smell of chew), Two-Socks (He had two white socks, duh), Kit (The only girl and our foxy little lady), then Thunder the only black and white puppy, we named him Thunder because his color surprised us aka Thunderstruck.

Around this same time my old dog Banner was very sick and I had been crying a lot because I knew she didn’t have much longer with us. I was spending hours and hours with her, because I loved her so much. She had been one of my best friends since I was eight years old. She knew all my secrets and was always there to put a smile on my face every day. She was diagnosed with a uterine tear, which had lead to pyometra, a serious, life threatening infection. The Veterinarian said she would not live and gave her a 20% chance of recovery. Well my mom was really worried about how Banner’s death would affect me and tried to divert my attention to something else to ease the pain. So she told me to pick a puppy, even though I didn’t want a puppy, I just wanted Banner. My mother was very persistent, so I began looking each of them over and narrowing my decision down to two. I loved Thunder because he was unique and quiet, but Nemo was very loving and had a blue eye just like Banner’s brother Tony (who I still have).

Even after the other pups all went to knew loving homes I still couldn’t choose between Nemo and Thunder, so I ended up taking them to their first dog show together and that is where I made my choice. My mother’s friend Eric really wanted Nemo and begged for him the whole time we were there. So by the end of the day we said yes you can buy Nemo and we will keep Thunder.

Thunder quickly became part of the family, Banner loved him. Tony didn’t really seem to excited but he dealt with the youngsters because his sister protected them. This made me very happy, because something almost magical seemed to happen. Being around the puppies so full of playfulness and life, made my old girl want to live. After a few months of medication and love. Banner made a full recovery. The vet couldn’t believe it, when I called and told them the news. They did warn me that if it has happened once there is a higher risk of it happening again. At that moment I was just happy she was doing well and now I had three fluffy dogs to love on.

They were my pack; they loved going swimming together, playing fetch, and going camping. Of course Banner seemed to love Thunder much more than Tony did so sometimes I would only take Banner and Thunder and leave the old grump at home. Thunder slowly grew into a beautiful adult dog; I taught him tricks such as sit, down, stay, come, dance, and kisses. He was so cute I took him practically everywhere I went. I even made him wear a goofy little jacket.

When I went to college it was especially hard on me because I couldn’t see or hug on any of them until I came home on breaks. Sometimes I would Skype with them so I could see their cute little faces and listen to them bark at me. With the loss of one of my closest friends over one of the Christmas breaks I needed my dogs and my friends more than ever; to comfort me, to show me unconditional love, and to just be there when I cried myself to sleep.

As the years in college flew by so did my dog’s puppy years.. every time I came home Thunder looked bigger and fluffier. Banner and Tony began to grow grey hairs on their faces and walk a little slower with each visit.

As I made the last drive home from college I was so happy to be able to spend more time with them. But not even a week after I got home from school, tragedy struck, Banner was sick again. This time I knew she wouldn’t make it. She was too old now (four years had flown on by). So I made her comfortable and made sure she knew she was loved. All the treats she would eat, fresh water, and a blanket. One night I went to sleep and I told myself she isn’t going to make it through the night. When I woke up around 6am and felt her cold body, I knew she was gone. She had passed away in her sleep sometime between 3am and 6am. But Thunder and Tony lay faithful to her, both laying beside her on her last night with us.

After the loss of Banner it was never really the same, Tony no longer wanted to be around Thunder and would bite him when I wasn’t home. The two had to be separated unless I was there. Since Tony was retired, I started to focus more on Thunder. I began spending more time with him, trying new things such as agility (obstacle course for dogs), herding, and kayaking. Turns out he loves kayaking just as much as I do, so now when we take my kayak I have him jump in with me.

My friend and I rescued a new dog named Auto about a year and a half ago. He is big, clumsy, and not very smart, but him and Thunder became buds and love to play together. They are a lot of fun to go camping or swimming with. Tony is now 14 years old and just relaxes at home while Thunder and Auto continue to go on new adventures every week.

In conclusions I love all of my dogs, but Banner will always hold a special place in my heart. I hope that one day Thunder and I can hold a bond as strong.