Dogs Are Family Too...Three

I am certain you have heard that Border Collies are very intelligent.  Well, we got Tippy to be my companion in my truck as I drove around between jobsites.  I spent a lot of time with her and I always talked to her as if she was a person, not a dog.  After a while, other people noticed that she seemed to understand everything I said.  This did not surprise Tippy or me  but seemed to confuse many others.

I told you about Bertha, because I want you to understand something.  Bertha was stone deaf.  She was so deaf that several times meter readers came knocking on my door to tell me I had a dead dog in the backyard.  They could not wake her and were afraid to touch her.  Now let me ask you a question, "How do you call a deaf dog into the house?"

When we had all 3 Setters, it wasn't too bad because Bertha learned to watch the others to know when to come into the house.  But if she was sleeping, I had to go and get her.  When Tippy arrived, all that changed.  First of all she hounded poor Bertha with mercy to play with her.  Bertha would go and hide to get away from Tippy.  Whenever I wanted Bertha in the house, I would say to Tippy, "Go get Bertha", and away she would go.  She would come back with a big smile on her face, proud of her accomplishment.  I would then say "Where's Bertha" and Tippy would look over her shoulder and realize that Bertha had not followed her, she would give me almost a Gallic shrug and go and fetch Bertha once more.  This routine amazed house guests numerous times.

Tippy was never officially trained.  We have a manual gate in the driveway which we usually leave open.  When Tippy and Snowflake were let into the front yard, the gate was closed.  If only Tippy was in the front yard, we did not need to close the gate because Tippy would run along the fence and the open gate line, back and forth, barking at something across the street.  But she would not leave the yard if you told her to stay in the yard.  The amazing thing is anyone in the family could tell her.  The words did not need to be exact.  Just anything that meant, stay in the yard...

Tippy passed on recently and is sorely missed.  I miss her hiding behind my easy chair during a thunder storm.  I miss her cowering under my desk when it thundered.  I miss her licking my hand looking for attention all the time.  I miss my best friend.  Who says dogs aren't family? 

 

About a month ago now, it was time for Snowflake and Tippy to get their teeth cleaned. The vet insists on knocking the dogs out during the teeth cleaning. Accordingly, we must not feed the dogs for 12 hours before their appointment. Much to the displeasure of Snow and Tippy we did not feed them after dinner, no treats, no table scraps, no good night cookie, nothing. Two sour dogs. The next morning they were not fed breakfast which caused quite a fuss. Breakfast is their main meal of the day.

About 8:30 am I dropped the dogs off at the vets expecting to pick them up in the afternoon. Around 11am I got a call from the vet telling me that the teeth cleaning was going ahead for Snowflake but not for Tippy.

In the vet's opinion, Tippy was too sick to risk the anathesia. She said that Tippy had been given a preliminary test and it was her opinion that Tippy was diabetic. Furthermore, she wanted me to authorize more tests to confirm that condition at a significant additional cost. I said that we would adjust Tippy's diet. The vet was unhappy with my decision.

Making a long story short. We brought Tippy home that evening to find out that she was sick. She got progressively worse all week and finally died on Saturday. 8 days after the visit to the vet's.

Now Tippy was very clever. She could get into or escape from almost anything. She was willful. She had been forced to fast and missed her regular meal that morning. It is my opinion that she got into something at the vet's.

Now let's further set the table, for the last couple of months there has been a pet food recall. Store brands and the special expensive premium Vet brands as well. All canned food which in our house was a special treat for the dogs. There regular food was dry kibble.

I believe that Tippy was another casualty of this pet food recall. The vet went to great lengths to explain how Tippy was very sick and needed tests and special treatment. When she arrived at the vet's she was fine.

I am writing this story for 2 reasons. The first is that it will help me get closure, Tippy was my shadow.

The second reason is to extend my sympathies to pet owners affected by this recall. Please rally to support our pets and insist that the pet food companies use 'fit for human' materials instead of the unregulated garbage they now use. The only way to impact that cartel is to make your own feed if you have time or purchase pet food from more trustworthy companies.

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