Thursday, October 2, 2008

Love Thursday


"Old dogs, like old shoes, are comfortable. They might be a bit out of shape
and a little worn around the edges, but they fit well."

-- Bonnie Wilcox 'Old Dogs, Old Friends'




We have three dogs. Two younger mutts and a geriatric border collie - Natasha. ‘Tosh is skinny and feeble. She eats and sleeps, eats and sleeps and has accidents in our laundry room. Monday night I was cleaning yet another mess and thought to myself I’d be nice to have my laundry room back. You see, Natasha is not long for this world. She’s old and deaf and does not respond if in a deep sleep. We lean in close and stare at her chest waiting for the rise and fall. We’ve wondered how she will fare through the winter.

And then Tuesday night she disappeared. This a dog who never leaves the back patio let alone the yard. She’s arthritic and weak. I can’t imagine she’d go far. We searched the yard. Of course it was dark and none of our flashlights worked. So I marched around the yard with my laptop as a light source. Fortunately a kind neighbor loaned me a flashlight but the search was fruitless.

Our house is flanked by an empty lot. Yesterday I searched the lot looking for her body. No luck. We went to the humane society - no ‘Tosh. I called work (The Animal Emergency Center) - not there. I put an add on Craigslist and filed a missing dog report. Today we put up flyers.

I am concerned. But my concern is different than if I were looking for a younger dog. I’m more worried about her being alive than dead. I don’t want her cold, hungry and wet. I don’t want her scared. I want her to be safe whether that is in life or death.

Today I have my laundry room back. But the house is lonely. So we will continue to search for our sweet old dog whom we’ve known and loved since she was a puppy. And we will continue to hope she is safe, one way or the other.

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Happy Love Thursday!

I hope each and every one of you knows the love of a good dog.

9 comments:

ELK said...

my heart goes out to you and please keep us updated...we have had 3 golden retrievers 2 are gone # 3 is 10 years old ~ dog love is so special~ blessings

Bridge said...

oh sweetie, I am so sorry. Its a helpless feeling when your missing a pet. holding you all in my heart...hoping for a happy ending.

Erin Faye said...

I am so sorry to hear that. I hope you find her!

Elizabeth Harper said...

Oh...I am sorry to hear that your dog has gone missing. It must be worse since as you said she's old and sick. I hope you find her soon.

Thanks too for stopping by my blog today and commenting on my post about my friend Jennifer. She really was a dear person.

Cindy said...

i'm sorry to read that your beloved natasha is missing. i hope you find her safe and sound very soon. thank you for visiting us.

spread your wings said...

I came here because you visited our blog. I am so sad to read your story. I sure hope there will be a happy ending and you find her safe and sound very soon.

I like your blog page and your etsy site. I've admired your work there before. Your banner is wonderful too.

thank you for your visit and nice comments. it always makes my day to get comments. : )

Kim said...

I'm sorry to hear about your baby. I hope you find her soon.

Amy said...

Oh Shalet. I'm so sorry. I wonder if she left to spare you watching her fail. Perhaps she knew her end was near and she wanted to be alone. I hope you get some closure.

Courtney said...

I am now quite late in posting this, but I wanted to let you know how sorry I am. It breaks my heart to hear because I do know the love of a good dog (more than one,actually.)

Have you found her or had any news? I so hope that there has been a good development in this story.