Friday, July 15, 2016

Willie





A couple of months ago I wrote about Willie, a (mumble) years-old  miniature Dachshund and long time member of the family.

She'd developed an abscess on her neck, we drained it, she got better.

In that post I said she was 12 and was in error. She would have been 14 in November.


Yes, would have. She died yesterday morning.

If the one dog year equals seven human years formula holds true, she was pushing 95.

She's been slowing down in the last couple of years and not nearly as spry as she once was. She also suffered from cataracts and didn't see well at all.


None of that bothered her much. She was a house dog but spent a lot of time outside exploring. Every day she made her rounds of the outbuildings and corrals, taking the pulse of the place, as it were.

A couple of weeks ago she had a seizure. Since that time she's been fading fast.

Yesterday morning Mom and I watched her tottering around unsteadily. She was following her nose, checking things out. She was really wobbly, but I was reassured that she still had the spark of interest and curiosity driving her to explore.


She wobbled over to Mom and I, where we stood discussing her pending demise. Then she collapsed, kicked a few times, and was gone.

Nature was very kind to Willie. She didn't suffer, didn't have to live in pain or infirmity while her humans decided to put her down.

I dug another deep hole in the dog cemetery and Mom and I laid her to rest.


It's been very hard on Mom, Willie was her constant companion in the house, always close by and involved.

After we buried her I checked cows and fond that the last cow had finally calved.


Death and life, they're all part of the deal.

Thanks for sharing your live with us Willie. We'll miss you.

10 comments:

  1. Sorry to hear that! Dog's are good people. Losing one hurts. Hang in there.

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    1. Thanks Juvat. We'll miss her but we were lucky to have her in our lives for as long as we did.

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  2. My condolences to you and your mom. Losing a long time four legged companion is tough. They become such an integral part of our lives.

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    1. Thanks Marc. That's what she was, an integral part of every day.

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  3. Ah gee...

    Sad to hear of Willie's passing. I'll offer up a prayer for his safe arrival at the Rainbow Bridge.

    Condolences my friend, he was a good dog.

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    1. Sorry, meant to say "her," it was the dust in the air which caused me to mistype that...

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    2. Thanks Sarge. She had a somewhat confusing name. Mom named her Willie-Bur after my Grandpa Wilbur. She brought Willie home on Grandpa's birthday which prompted the name. Willie had a sister, Bexie-Ruth, named after another relative. Bexie developed severe seizure disorder and died at age two.

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  4. Losing a family member is always hard, and pets ARE family members. This next part is hard for a Badger to say, even, (ACK!), Dachshunds. It is something of a comfort, knowing that she will be waiting at the Rainbow Bridge. My sympathies, my friend.

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    1. Thanks Scott. I guess they're all wolves at heart, even Dachshunds.

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