That adorable picture of Sparky sparked me into writing some of my ideas about dogs and I hope to hear from others.
My best friend for almost 15 years was Sophie a grey Standard Poodle. She was not only smart but acutely aware and fully bonded to me. She actually picked me and who was I to refuse. I visited the breeder and met a littler of maybe 8 puppies. They all greeted me during their play with one exception. One little girl seems to be aloof and showed no interest. That was Sophie. She waited until all the other pups were done and walked over sat on my lap and looked directly into my eyes. A short while later she was on my lap on the long drive home. We were joined at the hip" for the rest of her life. She died of an inoperable mediastinal tumor. I know she was in pain but she wanted to be there for me. The day before she died she let me know that as much as she wanted to be with me, the pain was too much. If I meet her (sure hope to) in another life I hope she will confirm this.
I am convinced that Sophie knew about my PC before anyone else. She was never a crotch oriented dog but she paid unusual attention to my crotch. She sniffed and snorted often. If I had taken her advise I might not have gone metastatic. This was well before my diagnosis.
My now best friend is Saffron (Saffie) a saffron colored Poodle who has now gone apricot. She was a gift from my Husband and two sisters after my diagnosis. Saffie is a great dog but I doubt I will ever have the same amazing relationship I had with Sophie. Saffie does seem to love me and will cuddle and comfort me and is almost as attached as Sophie but I think that the bond with Sophie was a one of a kind. Saffie did not pick me
There is strong evidence that people who live with dogs are healthier and happier than those who do not. I can't imagine, nor would I want to be in a world without dogs. I know several "cat people" and they love their cats but I don't understand why they don't want the best
Thank you Sparky for setting me off on this.
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spencoid2
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I think it’s important to have someone, human, dog, or otherwise, to love and take care of. Not everyone is so fortunate. I’ve found that the past 18 months, while working from home, my bond with our 2 dogs has grown stronger. I’m not sure how this relates to cancer other than enhancing ones sense of well being. Like you, I can’t imagine our home without our pups.
Sparky says thank you for the mention. He is our first dog we have ever had and I didn’t get him until the month that I found out I had cancer. He was born to a dog that I had known since he was a puppy and who had to live with this part of the time as a roommate. So we have connections to his father and his mother was the neighbors dog that had gotten out. His father was a 6 pound Chihuahua and his mother was a 22 pound miniature Italian greyhound. The father, Niño, Was a trooper as he had to stand on his tiptoes to reach the mother. When the litter was born I went over and I have a video of when I actually picked him up when I saw him and I started crying and I said “this is the one”He went with me to some of my radiation sessions and the nurse even brought it into the radiation room when I was done and put him on my chest. So he’s been there for me through everything. He was born January 14, 2014, the same month that I had found out about my prostate cancer. We had our wedding this past January on the 14th so it would be on his birthday. My birthday is just 10 days later, so we celebrate the homework together he and I. And his birthday(and my) month we get caviar, smoked salmon, king crab, lobster etc as we celebrate every day of the month.
Being away this past three months I’ve been torture. It’s so good to be home.
Great dog post. I have two and life with it a dog just wouldn’t be the same. But it leads me to one question. Do you think you are not allowing yourself to be as close to Saffie because you think Somehow it would be a betrayal to your beloved Sophie? Maybe give Saphie a chance to be loved as much as Sophie was? It might be good for both of you? Just sayin….
I try to not compare and give Saffie all the love she deserves. She is just a little aloof and "independent" Saffie is a great dog (always gets comments about how well behaved she is) but Sophie was virtually perfect. A friend is visiting long term and his dog Flea is also perfect. He was very well trained, maybe I mess up Saffie's training a little. I know that dogs sense your emotions and that she might be reacting to my "dissatisfaction" I will try to be a better dad.
🐕🦺 Mateo is my 3rd standard poodle. 2.5 years and such a boy. Smaller (moyen) at 29#, doesn’t take so much of the bed! And yes he loves the beach. Paul
what a beautiful dog and photo. Mateo loving the sunset. I could put it on my silly poodlex.com web site as employee of the month (have not changed it in years) if Mateo is willing
is that a yes, does Mateo want to be employee of the month at poodlex.com i have not changed it in years, think it is still Matilda i can copy the picture but need a bio and what is her position probably bone tester.
Saffron is our fourth Standard Poodle. She sleeps with me. Last night she proved her worth again. I spent almost three hours on top of my Sprinter trimming branches on our driveway and got totally exhausted. It actually felt good but I could not get to sleep. My whole body felt weird sort of a little numb or ??? So I spent a half hour or so finding the elusive cleavers burrs that had escaped detection earlier. I shortly felt better and was able to sleep. It was undoubtedly the attention to something other than my weird feeling and the calming effect of touching a dog.
I liked these posts. My partner and I have been thinking about getting a dog for a while and I think we are ready now. I've never owned one before. My partner has but that was many years ago. I retired early after diagnosis and will be the primary caregiver for the dog. I worried about making a multi year commitment to a dog when I may not live very long but I'm feeling more confident now that I will be around at least until my partner is ready to retire. It's a difficult decision that we haven't wanted to take lightly.
it is not an easy decision. i recommend doing one of two things. get an older already trained dog but then you may have to deal with the horror of putting him/her "down" or get a desirable dog like a Poodle and train him/her very well so anyone would be thrilled to adopt. my Saffron is probably a good candidate for adoption if both of us die. I have a friend with a dog named Flea. He is a mutt but is very good looking. He is one of the best behaved sweetest well trained dog I have ever met. People would be lined up to take him if his dad dies.
I have 2 strong willed dogs. One is part pit bull and part pain in the ass and the other part Great Pyrenees and part pain in the ass. I love them both but they are not well trained (our fault) but I love them both. We have had dogs our whole married life. We started with a 100 # German Shepard and 90# Black Lab mix. At one point we had 3. They have gotten smaller over the years because I did not want to be lifting a 100# dog into the back of my truck. All still bigger than Sparky. Life would not be as full without them. Great post.
i have a dog ramp that i can use if Saffie can no longer jump into the van. I like big dogs. Saffie is supposed to be pure Poodle but i think she is also part pain in the ass.
I have dog I named Buffy that I adopted from a shelter a few months before the Covid pandemic hit. She is joyful and energetic and has an usual trait -- she loves to watch television, especially shows with dogs, horses or other animals. She was a stray and is timid with people at first.
Here, she is patiently waiting for me to turn on the TV !
We were a well respected Rottweiler breeder in Michigan for nearly 30 years. We always put put the breed before profits. We continue to keep three Rotties with us, one in the house and two out in our former breeding kennel. Our three are sisters from one of our last litters.
when my hubby and sisters arranged for Saffron they were grilled as if they were getting a high security clearance. fortunately the breeder allowed them to buy one of her babies.
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