The least fun event of the summer was putting Bella down. I never thought I'd have to make the decision to put one of my dogs down, I just assumed they'd die of old age or violently at the hands of a vehicle. Life is full of surprises. Bella had had a rough winter and was having a hard time keeping weight on. We figured it was old age, made some diet changes but worried little as she still had the same energy she'd previously had. We decided to have Bella stay with Jarred's mom for the summer as I was going to be living in my horse trailer with Shuksan and Gretta and Jarred was biking out to Idaho. Bella was never much for long car rides or travel, so we figured she'd enjoy Noni's quiet backyard. I was due to head back to Washington for the weekend mid-July and the week prior to my departure, Noni called about Bella. She was not eating and her energy level had dropped. Noni took Bella into the vet, blood and urine tests were done but the results for both came back normal. Noni suggested to us that we may want to consider putting her down unless we wanted to spend money on x-rays and ultrasounds. We decided to wait until we saw Bella and talked to the vets ourselves, to make our final assessment of her condition.
I've never quite known what to think when people say, "Oh, you'll know when your pet is ready to die." I'd never seen a pet "ready" to die until I came back and saw Bella. It wasn't that she could not get up out of bed, it was more that she'd lost a ton of weight and just wasn't herself. She wagged her tail when she saw us and then went directly to her bed. It was at that moment that we knew that ultra sounds and x-rays weren't what she needed, nor did I want to wait until she couldn't get out of her bed. I wanted her to die fairly happy, just as I'd like to die. So later that morning, Jarred and I took her down to the local vet and had her put down in the yard behind the clinic. We buried her under a pile of rocks in the Palisades, a beautiful area between Wenatchee and Ephrata.
Bella was a funny dog. She wasn't affectionate like Shuksan and Gretta but she knew who her people were and was the ever dependable trail dog who always led us back to the car, even in the dark. She was a kick ass mama dog who diligently showed both Easton and Shuksan what it meant to be a good dog and how to weasel oneself onto the couch. Most importantly, she showed Jarred that having a dog can be easy. If it weren't for her we wouldn't have Shuksan and Gretta. Hats off to the Little Juka (ie Bella).
I've never quite known what to think when people say, "Oh, you'll know when your pet is ready to die." I'd never seen a pet "ready" to die until I came back and saw Bella. It wasn't that she could not get up out of bed, it was more that she'd lost a ton of weight and just wasn't herself. She wagged her tail when she saw us and then went directly to her bed. It was at that moment that we knew that ultra sounds and x-rays weren't what she needed, nor did I want to wait until she couldn't get out of her bed. I wanted her to die fairly happy, just as I'd like to die. So later that morning, Jarred and I took her down to the local vet and had her put down in the yard behind the clinic. We buried her under a pile of rocks in the Palisades, a beautiful area between Wenatchee and Ephrata.
Bella was a funny dog. She wasn't affectionate like Shuksan and Gretta but she knew who her people were and was the ever dependable trail dog who always led us back to the car, even in the dark. She was a kick ass mama dog who diligently showed both Easton and Shuksan what it meant to be a good dog and how to weasel oneself onto the couch. Most importantly, she showed Jarred that having a dog can be easy. If it weren't for her we wouldn't have Shuksan and Gretta. Hats off to the Little Juka (ie Bella).
4 comments:
Living with you and Bella those few months in Bellingham also made me realize how awesome it is to have a dog. Rest in peace Bella!
Bella was a dog who knew herself - that was all she could ever be no matter where she lived... I do like to think of her in the warm sunshine of Eastern Washington - despite looking like Santa's Little Helper - cold was not for her. Rest in peace sweet Bella!
P.S. On a side note please expand on the topic of you living in a horse trailer for the summer.
Oh sweet Bella. I loved living with her. She was always such an easy going girl. When you guys would visit and all the dogs were wild together, Bella was always the calm little girl relaxing on a soft pillow. She was loved and will be missed.
Sarah,
anxiously awaiting more blog entries. Knowing the two of you there have surely been interesting events in your life. Have J do one on the lumberjack adventure in my backyard.
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