Things I want to remember about my dog Mish

5:31 AM Fri, 10/15/2021

She's getting old, and she knows it. Me too, I'm getting old and I know it, so I have sympathy for her.

Perhaps I should say, I'm retired a few years now. Retiring simplified my life and made the dogs a bigger part of it. They get a lot of my time.

When I bring her a treat her eyes are on me, not the treat. Until I'm arms-length away from her, her eyes are on my eyes. (Our other dogs look only at the treat.)

For the past couple months, her back leg troubles her. She has a bit of a limp. It varies, some days worse than others. Finally it occurred to me to stop the roughhousing. I keep an eye on our (hundred-pound) puppy so he doesn't jump on her. Actually, he caught on quickly. He knows, too, that she is getting old.

Yesterday I noticed some blood by her butt. Oh, that can't be good.

6:36 AM Fri, 10/15/2021

Sometimes, she wants something. "What do you want?" I ask.  She licks her lips: A treat, Daddy. I want a treat.

I love it that she talks to me like that.

1:37 AM Sat, 10/16/2021

All the dogs I ever had, had dark brown eyes. Except Mish. Hers are very light brown, almost golden.

28 Oct

She loves to "hold hands" -- to wrap her front leg around my forearm while I'm petting her with the other hand.

And I've been watching her eyes: She definitely watches my eyes when I bring her a treat, till I'm within arm's length of her.

 

3 Nov 2021

When I take her paw in my hand, it's a handful. But she does prefer wrapping forearms.

4 Nov 2021

Yesterday I let our three dogs out and (later) in again, around lunchtime. I was in a good mood and gave them each a "chicken stick" treat.

Today, just now, just before noon, I let them in. They all looked at me expectantly. Mish looked at me and licked her lips: A treat, Daddy. I want a treat.

What a personality that dog has!

10 Nov 2021

I was sitting on the couch. Mish was on the couch, lying down, her front paws out in front of her. I put my hand gently on her paws. She pulled one paw out and put it on top of my hand.

Her butt is improved, by the way. No more blood.

She has a lot of good days, too, with that achy hind leg. The MSM helps, and the Dasuquin. And for a while we stopped the roughhousing that (I think) was the original source of the ache. Gave her time to heal up. I still interrupt them when they roughhouse, but not immediately.

3:23 PM  1 Dec 2021 // Dad's birthday. Happy Birthday, Dad!

Garbage day. Time for my weekly-if-I-remember start-the-garden-tractor-and-let-it-run. Took the dogs out with me, two birds one stone.

After about 15 minutes Mish came to get me -- came up within 5ft of the noisy tractor to get my attention. I could see the other two by the house. Probably want to go in, I figured. Hopped off the tractor & walked toward the house. Mish stayed right with me.

As I got close to the house, Max and Lexi walked up to the door, definitely ready to go in. I opened the door and as they went in, I turned to look at Mish. She looked at me as if to say "No, I'm not ready yet" and walked away.

That's my Mish.

5:14 AM 15 Jan 2022

I love it when she looks me in the eye as I bring her a treat. She loves me more than she loves the treat!

Lately, I have Mish on a leash every time she goes out. To prevent the running and roughhousing. We seem to have it down to a schedule. Every two hours Max (the puppy) is ready to go out again. So the four of us go out, Max and Lexi and Mish and me, with Mish and me leashed together. 20 minutes, give or take. Retirement creates time for such things.

Every two hours, 6 AM to 6 PM, but perhaps we can skip one around noon.

//

7:52 PM  Fri Aug 12 2022

Around 3:30 this afternoon, I figured it was time to watch a little TV. Found season one of Brokenwood, set the volume right, and settled down into the sofa.

Mish barked, that urgent bark that means I-need-your-attention-pronto. I mumbled to myself and settled deeper into the sofa. A minute later, the urgent bark came a second time.

I got up. When I got close enough to see her, she looked me right in the eye and licked her lips three times: "I'M GETTING PRETTY HUNGRY NOW"

The nerve of that dog! I laughed and went back to the couch. Not five minutes later, the third urgent bark. I shut off the TV and made their dinner.

//

Later, about 20 minutes ago, 7:30 PM, the dogs are quiet, settled-in for the night.  I decide to have a glass of wine.

I grab the glass, grab the bottle, pour the wine, you know the steps.

Before I get to step four (put the wine away) Mish hobbles into the kitchen as if to say "I'm ready for wine-on-the-porch". I couldn't feign misunderstanding. We had to go out.

She does love her time outside.

/////

11 December 2023

Today, my girl Mish died, a victim of the cancer. We found out seven months ago. The vet gave her three months. She lasted seven.

She was fine on Saturday. Sunday she woke up in pain so bad she could hardly move. Monday, today, we took her to the vet and had her put to sleep.

You spend your whole life developing a trust relationship with your dog. And the last thing you do for her is lie and say the vet is going to help you sleep better now. It was as close as I could come to not lying. But not close enough.

She was the prettiest, smartest, most human dog I ever knew.

Mish