Tag: dedication

Gus-Gus
2005-2019

December 6th was just about as awful of a day as I could possibly imagine. Gus, our nearly 15 year old Yorkie-Bichon suddenly collapsed. When I tried to see if he could walk, he kept going in a circle. We immediately drove to the emergency vet clinic. They found that a tumor, probably on his spleen, is causing internal bleeding. They could perform emergency surgery to determine if the tumor was malignant, however that would mean he only has a couple of months, at best. The hemorrhaging may have caused a lack of blood to his brain, which means he probably also had a mild stroke.

The most humane thing to do was say good bye, and it was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do.

Why Maharajah??

Yes, I know a “Maharajah” is an Indian Prince and I’m not trying to be culturally insensitive. Gus had a very strong personality. He was very much a “I want to do it my way” kind of dog. If there was a mound of blankets, pillows, or laundry and you turned your back or stepped out of the room, you would return to find him lying at the top of said mound. We often accused him of thinking he was “the maharajah”. He would lay there with a smug look on his face. This was a behavior he exhibited to the end.

Gus hated wearing costumes and clothes

We’ve had him since he was about 20 weeks and over the years he had many nicknames. His full name was actually Gus-Gus, named after the mouse from Cinderella. Gus was the short version. He had a big dog personality; always thinking he could take on Canadian geese or deer. Therefore I would sometimes call him Battousai the Manslayer, clearly he had that man killer instinct.

He could be a little asshole sometimes. For example if it was raining or too cold outside, then in his mind that made it all right to pee in the house. One time we accidentally locked him in the bedroom, so he jumped up on the bed, walked onto the dresser from the bed, and pooped on the dresser. It was his way of saying “How Dare You Lock Me In Here”. His strong personality was his most endearing quality, it is truly one of thing things I loved most about him.

None Shall Compare

I grew up with dogs. We had Labradors when I was a kid. A few months after my wife and I started dating we bought Gus. He was apart of our life before we were even married. He was the first dog I ever personally owned (Gromit was the second dog we bought together a few months after Gus). While I adored all the dogs I had around me as a kid, there is something different about the first dog you bought for yourself (or your family).

When I was talking to my neighbor, he told me about a dog he had. He explained that it was almost as if the dog could tell what he was thinking by a simple look or a nod of his head. He said that dog is the dog that all his other dogs are compared to. This is true for Gus. We know there will never be another Gus, but I know we will compare every new dog to Gus. We have a one year old Westie, and I already comment about behaviors he’s exhibiting that he has clearly learned from “his mentor”, aka Gus.

RIP buddy. I will miss you every day for the rest of my life, but I hope we gave you the best years of yours.

“Dogs’ lives are short, too short, but you know that going in. You know the pain is coming, you’re going to lose a dog, and there’s going to be great anguish, so you live fully in the moment with her, never fail to share her joy or delight in her innocence, because you can’t support the illusion that a dog can be your lifelong companion. There’s such beauty in the hard honesty of that, in accepting and giving love while always aware that it comes with an unbearable price.” – Dean Koontz

Gromit
2005-2018

Last week was a rough week. I was sick about half the week and on the day when I was vomiting and running a temperature of 102, we lost Gromit. He had a mild seizure in the kitchen, we rushed him to the vet and they found a weak pulse. They then instructed us to take him to the emergency vet where he went into cardiac arrest upon arrival. They revived him but explained that there is fluid around his heart and he is likely to experience repeated issues. The most humane thing to do, for him, was to let him go. It was really hard for me not to be there. Tuesday, June 5th 2018 is one of the worst days of my life.

Just Don’t Laugh Too Hard

Gromit came from a pet store in the UP Mall in South Bend; he was about three months old. However, he was still younger, by about three months, than our other dog Gus. They are also completely different breeds where Gus is about half the size. Despite the difference in genetics, they were brothers at heart. I may even be so bold as to say they were figuratively and literally akin to Lenny and George from Of Mice and Men. While he was trainable, Gromit wasn’t the smartest dog I’ve had (although he was house trained sooner than Gus). However his vapid demeanor was part of his charm. You knew when he was a happy dog, although behind that smile you can tell it was a thoughtless void.

The dog loved to give kisses. If he sets his mind to licking you, he will find any exposed skin to complete his mission. If you found yourself in a vulnerable position (ex: on the bed or the couch) and laughing hysterically, you may soon find him in your face. I was the common victim of Gromit’s tongue bathing. He was maniacal about it; literally pinning me down thus making me laugh harder. The experience was never too awful, aside from the fact that his breath smelled awful! I don’t know if gingivitis is or halitosis was part of the breed but there were other health related issues common to Wheaten’s.

Life with a Soft Coated Wheaten

He was afraid of everything, even Sphero BB-8

Gromit was a pure bred Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier. Unlike Gus, whom we researched before we bought him, Gromit was on a whim. We didn’t know anything about Wheaten’s prior to bringing him home. One thing is certain, he was afraid of everything. My little Sphero BB-8, dish towels, anything that made a noise (so just about every toddler toy we own).

An ailment common to Wheaten’s was a sensitive stomach. It’s highly recommended not to suddenly change their dog food. He did seem to suffer from stomach issues; acid reflux seemed to be a something we dealt with regularly. Unfortunately his solution seemed to be swallow anything he could find lying around on the floor, including our toddler’s socks.

Wheaten’s are hypoallergenic but he had allergies, which may have been something that contributed to his stomach issues. He had a mild allergy to yeast, which is often found in dogs skin. Yes, he was literally allergic to his own skin.

The older he got he did become a bit more aggressive, especially toward other dogs. He was not aggressive toward our other dog until starting about a year ago. Apparently this behavior is common in the breed. We had to be careful if he was around any other dogs; unfortunately he was in his kennel often during visits. Despite his bizarre allergies and his weird temperament when he was older, he was a good dog. We miss him and the house does feel emptier.