Well, another death in the family. My 12 year old dog, Oakley, passed away last weekend. What a sad day....I know there are a few people that will read this and think, "What's the big deal? It's just a dog for crying out loud." If your one of those, then read no further because I might get a little sentimental for a moment. But if you are an animal lover then you'll understand.
Oakley was a birthday gift from Trent while we were still dating. We got her from the pet store in the old Ogden City Mall downtown which no longer exists. She was supposed to be a German Shepherd/Alaskan Malamute mix but as she grew it was determined that she was a German Shepherd/Bassett Hound mix. How that happened, we'll never know. She had a howl for a bark and front legs that were short and crooked, but we loved her despite her flaws. She had a nose that could guide her from one town to the other....she literally walked from Pleasant View to my parent's home in North Ogden one day all by herself. She spent many hours locked up in the pound waiting for us to come bail her out and happily greeted us each time. She loved to explore and the neighborhood knew her well.
She went pheasant hunting with Trent one time and decided to jump out of the back of the truck at 55 mph and was hit by a car going 40 mph while crossing the street in front of our house and lived through it all with no broken bones. She was quite the dog!
Sadly she started getting old and the arthritis got to her. I noticed that she was really struggling to get up and walk last week and by Friday night she could hardly stand up. She was an outdoor dog but I decided to let her sleep inside Friday night to keep an eye on her. We took pictured that day and I kind of knew what was ahead of me. Trent had to work Saturday and I dreaded having to be the one to take her to the vet. Saturday morning she couldn't get up. I had to carry my 50 lb. dog out to do her business and knew that it was time to let her go. The kids and I took her to the vet and said our goodbyes through many tears. It was quite an emotional event and one that I really didn't want to have to do...especially by myself. We miss her and loved having 12 years with her.
It is really weird to not have a dog in the home. I can say that it is kind of nice in some ways, but not nice enough to keep me from getting another dog. I'm sure there is another dog in our future but not in the near future. You just gotta love em!!
