We had this little dog for the last 15 years right up through yesterday. My daughter wrote a blog post that my sister read. My sister sent a little message of condolence. It was simple. All it said was:
I Just read on fb that you had to put Tia down and i wanted to tell you how sorry I am. She was a wonderful member of your family.
Love,
Vickie
Yesterday I was playing the role of the big strong man. Today, I'm finally alone for the first time and as I look over at the empty dog bed by the wall of my home office and consume a box of Kleenex bawling like a little girl, I realize I need to write a response. This is not a response to Vickie, it's really a letter to me about who I chose as a life partner.
Putting The Dog Down
I need to tell Vickie she was mistaken.
Frisky died after 12 years, we had Snoopy for 7 years, Cody for 9 and a number the black Labs all seemed to move away after two or three. With a duration of more than 15 years Tia was with us longer than any pet I've ever had and if one thing was ever true, it is this, you never put Tia down.
Mandy put her down. In her blog tribute to Tia Mandy reminds us that Tia wasn't the smartest or bravest animal on the planet and you have to admit. If you're a dog, that's kind of a put down.
I put that dog down. I bet a week never went by when I didn't remind her how stupid she was . I've cursed her for getting light brown hair on all of my dark blue suits. I've called her the dumbest animal on the face of the planet. I've told her natural selection was frustrated because we kept screwing with the natural order of things by keeping her alive. I started calling her peepers because of all the times she would get nervous, lose control of her bladder and give me an opportunity to remind you that small dogs can't be house broken. I've said she is the only dog on the face of the planet that was dumb enough be hit by a car twice. I've called her a wuss, accused her of faking her hearing loss and as one final insult I will say that for her to give unconditional love to someone who verbally abuses her like that, well that's monumental stupid.
Ever since HP sent me to work from home Tia has been right here sleeping in my office so she could be near me. For a decade and a half every time I was in the living room reminding her how little value she had she would run over and crawl in my lap as if to say:
"I think all these insults amuse you and I love you so much that nothing is better for me than making you happy so while you're at it, don't forget the one about me being afraid of, well, of everything. That one seems to perk you up."
Yes, I've put Tia down.
The vet put Tia down when she helped us end the pain that Tia was hobbling through every time she would struggle to get up and waddle to the door when Maggie would tell her you got home.
Yes. Mandy put Tia down. The vet put Tia down and I definitely put Tia down but Michelle, if you only remember one thing about that dog, remember this. In 15 years YOU never put Tia down.
When I was on a rant about the two inch spot on the floor resulting from someone scaring the dog you were Perry Mason pleading her innocence as you ran for the Folex and paper towels.
When Mandy would rant about how stupid the dog was for bristling as Maggie walked by you would grab Tia, protect her, and explain to Mandy that Tia was older and needed her space.
Tia was never wrong to you. You never saw her as being stupid or timid. You weren't angry that she shed on your clean cloths, you were just in the market for a lint roller.
You put blankets and beds everywhere she might happen to lay down. You ran the air conditioner on the patio, regardless of the cost, to make "Tia's Room" the coolest room in the house so the dog would be more comfortable.
In the final weeks when Tia felt horrible and couldn't eat, you managed to open at least one can of every kind of food in the pantry on the outside chance that Tia would be willing to ingest a teaspoon of that particular sustenance.
Put her down? Michelle you opened a can of green beans and she ate one (count it one) bean. Then, the next day you opened another can on the outside chance she would eat another bean (you got her to eat half a bean as I recall so you figured the can was a good investment).
These past few weeks I would wake up in the middle of the night and you would be on the floor with one hand on the dog because your touch would bring Tia some comfort in the turmoil of her last days. Nothing was more important to you than trying to love Tia half as much as Tia loved you (let's face it, though we could all out smart her, nobody could out love that stupid little mutt)
And the final day, understanding that Tia has been dependant on you her whole life and that Tia trusted you completely, you once again took the completely selfless route. When every vet office was closed for the holiday you made me get up way too early and help you search for a place that could help her.
When the vet told you treatment would be crazy expensive you didn't even blink. Later, when the vet told you her kidneys were gone, and that she would never experience another day when she didn't suffer, you did it again.
You wanted nothing more than to keep her with you forever, even if it meant sleepless nights on the floor and opening a can of peas to see if you could get Tia to eat one of those. You wanted to keep her but that wasn't the best thing for Tia so you did what would hurt you the most.
Nope. My analysis is complete and one thing is sure. You never put that dog down. You always lifted her up.
Frisky died after 12 years, we had Snoopy for 7 years, Cody for 9 and a number the black Labs all seemed to move away after two or three. With a duration of more than 15 years Tia was with us longer than any pet I've ever had and if one thing was ever true, it is this, you never put Tia down.
Mandy put her down. In her blog tribute to Tia Mandy reminds us that Tia wasn't the smartest or bravest animal on the planet and you have to admit. If you're a dog, that's kind of a put down.
I put that dog down. I bet a week never went by when I didn't remind her how stupid she was . I've cursed her for getting light brown hair on all of my dark blue suits. I've called her the dumbest animal on the face of the planet. I've told her natural selection was frustrated because we kept screwing with the natural order of things by keeping her alive. I started calling her peepers because of all the times she would get nervous, lose control of her bladder and give me an opportunity to remind you that small dogs can't be house broken. I've said she is the only dog on the face of the planet that was dumb enough be hit by a car twice. I've called her a wuss, accused her of faking her hearing loss and as one final insult I will say that for her to give unconditional love to someone who verbally abuses her like that, well that's monumental stupid.
Ever since HP sent me to work from home Tia has been right here sleeping in my office so she could be near me. For a decade and a half every time I was in the living room reminding her how little value she had she would run over and crawl in my lap as if to say:
"I think all these insults amuse you and I love you so much that nothing is better for me than making you happy so while you're at it, don't forget the one about me being afraid of, well, of everything. That one seems to perk you up."
Yes, I've put Tia down.
The vet put Tia down when she helped us end the pain that Tia was hobbling through every time she would struggle to get up and waddle to the door when Maggie would tell her you got home.
Yes. Mandy put Tia down. The vet put Tia down and I definitely put Tia down but Michelle, if you only remember one thing about that dog, remember this. In 15 years YOU never put Tia down.
When I was on a rant about the two inch spot on the floor resulting from someone scaring the dog you were Perry Mason pleading her innocence as you ran for the Folex and paper towels.
When Mandy would rant about how stupid the dog was for bristling as Maggie walked by you would grab Tia, protect her, and explain to Mandy that Tia was older and needed her space.
Tia was never wrong to you. You never saw her as being stupid or timid. You weren't angry that she shed on your clean cloths, you were just in the market for a lint roller.
You put blankets and beds everywhere she might happen to lay down. You ran the air conditioner on the patio, regardless of the cost, to make "Tia's Room" the coolest room in the house so the dog would be more comfortable.
In the final weeks when Tia felt horrible and couldn't eat, you managed to open at least one can of every kind of food in the pantry on the outside chance that Tia would be willing to ingest a teaspoon of that particular sustenance.
Put her down? Michelle you opened a can of green beans and she ate one (count it one) bean. Then, the next day you opened another can on the outside chance she would eat another bean (you got her to eat half a bean as I recall so you figured the can was a good investment).
These past few weeks I would wake up in the middle of the night and you would be on the floor with one hand on the dog because your touch would bring Tia some comfort in the turmoil of her last days. Nothing was more important to you than trying to love Tia half as much as Tia loved you (let's face it, though we could all out smart her, nobody could out love that stupid little mutt)
And the final day, understanding that Tia has been dependant on you her whole life and that Tia trusted you completely, you once again took the completely selfless route. When every vet office was closed for the holiday you made me get up way too early and help you search for a place that could help her.
When the vet told you treatment would be crazy expensive you didn't even blink. Later, when the vet told you her kidneys were gone, and that she would never experience another day when she didn't suffer, you did it again.
You wanted nothing more than to keep her with you forever, even if it meant sleepless nights on the floor and opening a can of peas to see if you could get Tia to eat one of those. You wanted to keep her but that wasn't the best thing for Tia so you did what would hurt you the most.
Nope. My analysis is complete and one thing is sure. You never put that dog down. You always lifted her up.
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1 comment:
True. Mom was always delusional about the dog.
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