Once again my heart is heavy with grief. Not for any of my human friends or acquaintances but for another of my furry buddies.
This time my oldest living dog and the one remaining survivor from the original pack of eight, a female mini dachshund by the name of Ginnie, has joined Big Girl, Manley, Mini, Abigail, BeBe, Richie, Pete and Gizmo at the Rainbow Bridge where one day, we will all be reunited, never to be apart from each other again. Ginnie was with me for twelve wonderful years and was a couple of years old when she joined our family making her about fourteen or so.
I acquired her from a Veterinary friend who knew that I was looking for another dog at the time. She moulded into the household full of dogs and cats and although a bit standoffish, more than held her own when she needed to. Ginnie remained a bit of a standout her whole life never really making friends with any of the other dogs. Because she was the smallest, more than once she had to stand up for herself and did so very well. She had this remarkably soft coat which felt like velvet when you stroked her. At night, she had this habit of sleeping with her back touching me and I was always aware of her presence besides feeling her warmth on cold nights. Even though she was small, she would not take any crap from any of the other dogs and could sound quite ferocious.
I will miss her as she was always glad to see me and always made a fuss of me whenever I came home. It’s so sad when we lose our pets and they are never with us for very long. Just when you are used to having them around, they up and die because their lives are so short. Ginnie died from complications with pulmonary lung illness within three days of the symptoms and did so in her own way. She had been on the bed, her usual spot, and I watched as she pushed her way through the doggy door as she had done thousands of times before. She went out onto the deck and barked a couple of times and sat there looking around. Then, she moved onto one of the lower flower beds by the two ponds and lay down and passed quietly away as I watched, with tears streaming down my face.
I buried her along with all of her other buddies next to the big pond where she will spend the rest of her days. There are now ten dogs and two cats in that area all sleeping their final sleep together.
I should point out that my most recent adoptee that I have had for almost a year is another dachshund by the name of Buddy Holly, shortened to Buddy who is half blind, mostly deaf, has no sense of smell and more than a little senile. But, he gets about just fine and takes walkabouts out in the garden and is living out his life with us. His estimated age is twelve but I believe that he is probably a couple of years older so he and Ginnie were about the same age. I was hoping when I got him that he and Ginnie would become best buds but Ginnie, being who she was, just wouldn’t be friends.
Will I ever get another dog not to replace her but to fill the void that is left? Probably another rescue is the answer…
My thanks go to Dr Donop and all of the staff members at Austin Veterinary Diagnostic Hospital who as usual, did all they could to help Ginnie. It was just destined not to be…
Written 12/5/2019
Sad😩 I know how you feel!
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Thanks Anna
So sorry for your loss. You are such an amazing fur baby dad!
They make it easy for me….
I am so very sorry for your lose. My tears are for both of you.
Thank you quiall.
Imi pare rau! 😘
Thanks
Sad😩 I know how you feel!. Jesus bless you in this time.
Thank you
Sorry to hear about your loss, Francis! It’s a shame how short most pets’ lives are, because they enrich our lives so much. You helped Ginnie too! There’s no telling what her life would’ve been like if you hadn’t adopted her.
Thanks for your kind words Josh
No problem
It’s so hard when we lose our furry buddies. My condolences.
Yes it is and they will always have a place in our hearts even as the next one comes along…
I can only imagine how heart-rending it was to follow Ginnie out into the garden on that last walk. I know you will miss her always but especially at night.
It was hard to watch as I was crying so hard. I sure loved that little girl.
I know exactly how you feel and am truly sorry for your loss. Pets always leave us far too soon.
Thank you Helen
Oh, I am so sorry for your loss. Always so hard when a pet is gone. They leave such huge holes in our hearts!
I try to fill that hole with another adoptee and although they can never take the place of the ones that are gone…
Yes, you are so wonderful to open your heart again and again!
It’s seems so wrong to live a life losing so many precious ones. Our scaly, furry & feathered friends & family members give so much joy. They want to live, and with we whom love them in return.
Yes, I wish that our pets had longer lives. Ginnie was 14 still not long enough.
It’s never long enough, seemingly not fair to them or us, because we are all still learning & loving. It seems, no matter the creature, lizard, dog, human, or otherwise, the more we learn to be here, the less time we have here.
In the course of my lifetime, I have nurtured and loved over 30 dogs and a miscellaneous number of cats. I used to have a very large aviary and bred parakeets and finches, I still have 4 ponds two of which are around the 5000 gallon with very large Koi some of which are 30 years old. I loved them all and was always sad when they passed on. Incidentally, I am 84.
Oh my, it appears as though you’ve shown many animals true love, they need it as we do. You’re still keeping busy with those ponds, I am sure. Koi are beautiful & amazing. They are actually Carp aren’t they? A very special fish taught me fish have feelings too.
Interestingly enough, although I have had fish ponds and Koi for more than 30 years, I learnt a long time ago not to get too attached to any of them. I have over 300 Koi and Goldfish and none of them have names, not even the very big ones. It’s easier that way when they do pass on…
I suppose so, perhaps it is best to take the best care of them, but approach the rewards of fish & ponds as if you stumbled upon them in nature, to love & enjoy them as fleeting moments in time.
Yes, that is a novel way but sometimes hard to carry out when pumps fail or filters get blocked or the heron pays a visit…
I don’t want to think about those things. I don’t have it in me to have a pond susceptible to such things. I get attached to animals way quicker than humans. I wish you hadn’t had to experience such woes.
After 30 years of maintaining my ponds, you get to experience just about everything that can go wrong in between all of the wonderful moments of pleasure.
I am sure, my friend. Keep giving those fishies the best life as is possible.
Too bad, I’m very sorry for your lose! Hope your staying well this time!