Well, today marks a very sad day in my life... My dog, Mario, passed away today...
He was a 'Multi-Color' Shetland Sheepdog (black, brown, and white) and was born on July 3, 2001. One day, back in September of that year, my mom and I went to Walmart, and while trying to find a parking spot, we found a Ford Aerostar with "Sheltie Puppies" painted on the windows. We were curious, so we went over to the van, and saw breeder in the van, so we asked if we could see the puppies and maybe buy one... She said OK and opened her sliding door on the passenger side of the van, revealing two cardboard boxes with sheltie puppies in them. I asked my mom if we could buy one, and she said OK and helped me pick one out. He cost us $100, which wasn't a bad price, and we left.
We then went into a PetSmart (or is it PetsMart? Could be both, IMO) that was nearby and got all the accessories and pet food stuff we needed... We then went home and, because we had an appointment quickly after then, we locked him in the bathroom with his food and water and left...
And that marks the beginning of his life with us. He was about two months old at that point, and he's been with us ever since.
To quote the speech on the statue of 'Old Drum' in Warrensburg, Missouri, USA[quote name='George Graham Vest']"Gentlemen of the jury, the best friend a man has in this world may turn against him and become his enemy. His son or daughter whom he has reared with loving care may prove ungrateful. Those who are nearest and dearest to us -- those whom we trust with our happiness and good name -- may become traitors in their faith. The money that a man has he may lose. It flies away from him, perhaps when he needs it most. A man's reputation may be sacrificed in a moment of ill-considered action. The people who are prone to fall on their knees to do us honor when success is with us may be the first to throw the stone of malice when failure settles its cloud upon our heads. The one absolute, unselfish friend that man can have in this selfish world -- the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous -- is his dog."
"Gentlemen of the jury, a man's dog stands by him in prosperity and poverty, in health and sickness. He will sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry winds blow, and the snow drives fiercely, if only he can be near his master's side. He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer; he will lick the wounds and sores that come in encounter with the roughness of the world. He guards the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince. When all other friends desert, he remains. When riches take wings and reputation falls to pieces, he is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey through the heavens."
"If fortune drives the master forth an outcast in the world, friendless and homeless, the faithful dog asks no higher privilege than that of accompanying him to guard against danger, to fight against his enemies. And when the last scene of all comes, and death takes the master in its embrace, and his body is laid away in the cold ground, no matter if all other friends pursue their way, there by his graveside will the noble dog be found, his head between his paws, his eyes sad but open in alert watchfulness, faithful and true even to death."[/quote]Now that brings us to today.
When we woke up this morning, we found Mario laying down in the upstairs hallway in an unusual spot and position, and he layed there for an unusually long time. We went and checked on him, and found that he couldn't stand up. Only one side of his body seemed to be working properly, the other side tried, but couldn't maintain itself. His right eye didn't open, he couldn't walk because of his two right legs, and he hardly responded to anything.
We took him outside to check on him some more, and only confirmed what we had already found out. We took him to the emergency vet, and they did blood-work and took some X-Rays, but the doctor couldn't come up with anything conclusive, although a stroke was assumed by us, and the doctor said it was possible. We were given two recommendations. They were to leave him there for a few weeks to see if they could get him to recover, or put him to sleep. Our budget is considerably tight right now, so we just couldn't afford to keep him there for them to take care of him, so we chose to put him to sleep, and to put him out of his misery...
We are all torn up, but we think that's the best for him and for us, so that we don't have to endure a long wait game until it or something more serious happens... He was a good dog and gave us many laughs over the years, but his time has come, and we just need to understand that.
Thanks for reading this, I really needed to unload...
Your Friendly Neighborhood Egg
He was a 'Multi-Color' Shetland Sheepdog (black, brown, and white) and was born on July 3, 2001. One day, back in September of that year, my mom and I went to Walmart, and while trying to find a parking spot, we found a Ford Aerostar with "Sheltie Puppies" painted on the windows. We were curious, so we went over to the van, and saw breeder in the van, so we asked if we could see the puppies and maybe buy one... She said OK and opened her sliding door on the passenger side of the van, revealing two cardboard boxes with sheltie puppies in them. I asked my mom if we could buy one, and she said OK and helped me pick one out. He cost us $100, which wasn't a bad price, and we left.
We then went into a PetSmart (or is it PetsMart? Could be both, IMO) that was nearby and got all the accessories and pet food stuff we needed... We then went home and, because we had an appointment quickly after then, we locked him in the bathroom with his food and water and left...
And that marks the beginning of his life with us. He was about two months old at that point, and he's been with us ever since.
To quote the speech on the statue of 'Old Drum' in Warrensburg, Missouri, USA[quote name='George Graham Vest']"Gentlemen of the jury, the best friend a man has in this world may turn against him and become his enemy. His son or daughter whom he has reared with loving care may prove ungrateful. Those who are nearest and dearest to us -- those whom we trust with our happiness and good name -- may become traitors in their faith. The money that a man has he may lose. It flies away from him, perhaps when he needs it most. A man's reputation may be sacrificed in a moment of ill-considered action. The people who are prone to fall on their knees to do us honor when success is with us may be the first to throw the stone of malice when failure settles its cloud upon our heads. The one absolute, unselfish friend that man can have in this selfish world -- the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous -- is his dog."
"Gentlemen of the jury, a man's dog stands by him in prosperity and poverty, in health and sickness. He will sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry winds blow, and the snow drives fiercely, if only he can be near his master's side. He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer; he will lick the wounds and sores that come in encounter with the roughness of the world. He guards the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince. When all other friends desert, he remains. When riches take wings and reputation falls to pieces, he is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey through the heavens."
"If fortune drives the master forth an outcast in the world, friendless and homeless, the faithful dog asks no higher privilege than that of accompanying him to guard against danger, to fight against his enemies. And when the last scene of all comes, and death takes the master in its embrace, and his body is laid away in the cold ground, no matter if all other friends pursue their way, there by his graveside will the noble dog be found, his head between his paws, his eyes sad but open in alert watchfulness, faithful and true even to death."[/quote]Now that brings us to today.
When we woke up this morning, we found Mario laying down in the upstairs hallway in an unusual spot and position, and he layed there for an unusually long time. We went and checked on him, and found that he couldn't stand up. Only one side of his body seemed to be working properly, the other side tried, but couldn't maintain itself. His right eye didn't open, he couldn't walk because of his two right legs, and he hardly responded to anything.
We took him outside to check on him some more, and only confirmed what we had already found out. We took him to the emergency vet, and they did blood-work and took some X-Rays, but the doctor couldn't come up with anything conclusive, although a stroke was assumed by us, and the doctor said it was possible. We were given two recommendations. They were to leave him there for a few weeks to see if they could get him to recover, or put him to sleep. Our budget is considerably tight right now, so we just couldn't afford to keep him there for them to take care of him, so we chose to put him to sleep, and to put him out of his misery...
We are all torn up, but we think that's the best for him and for us, so that we don't have to endure a long wait game until it or something more serious happens... He was a good dog and gave us many laughs over the years, but his time has come, and we just need to understand that.
Thanks for reading this, I really needed to unload...
Your Friendly Neighborhood Egg
