Zack An IW reader's story

Zack

I look in the laundry room each morning only to realize that he is not there. For a fleeting moment, or maybe just out of habit, I look in to check on our pet dog, Zack. At almost nineteen years old, Zack was limited to our large laundry room. His hearing and eyesight were about gone, as was most of his control of his bodily functions.

We found our new family member almost nineteen years ago at the Indianapolis Humane Society. Zack was to replace the dog was had just lost to old age. After a short time without a pet, out children begged us for a new dog.

The little black ball of fur quickly became a member of our family. Zack turned out to be a real “people” dog – he always like to be right beside you getting attention. After so many years it was terribly hard to let him go. But we eventually realized that prolonging Zack’s life any longer was for OUR benefit, not HIS.

Zack gave us his love unconditionally for all those years. We miss him dearly. I know in my heart that if there is a place in heaven for pets, out little Zack will surely be there!

By Katherine Sarver of Noblesville, IN
"I hope this blog will help others in the same circumstance of losing a pet"

Leave a comment for Katherine here or on our FaceBook page.

*Share your pet story and/or photos with us, email jweiss@weisscomm.com and see your story posted here on the A Pet's Life blog.

Dot, the Tennis Court Runner A Pet's Life

Dot & her brother Monty

If you’ve ever seen a dachshund running, it is truly something to witness. Watching that long body and short legs bouncing along with long flopping ears just inches above the ground will put a big smile on your face.

My wife and I first witnessed Dot’s ability as a runner during puppy kindergarten classes where all of the other new puppy owners would stop what they were doing and gather around to watch Dot run to my wife in “call-and-come” training sessions. Due to her kidney disease, Dot was never really food driven which certainly helps in training. However, given the chance to be unleashed — allowing her to run as fast as she could and especially to my wife at the opposite end of a long room — Dot was one fast hot dog!

When at home on most evenings, Dot and her brother Monty were treated to a walk around our neighborhood. Their lives usually revolved around our kitchen, TV room, backyard and their bed. So they would always get so excited when their special walking leashes would make an appearance.

One of our stops while out walking was our community tennis court. I never had the heart to tell Dot that it was actually a community tennis court for humans; she always assumed that like our back yard, it was actually hers.

Immediately upon arriving on the court, Dot and her brother Monty would be taken off their leashes so they could run free. Believe me, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova couldn’t run faster then Dot could on a tennis court!

She would make repeated laps around the nets, always to our amazement at her speed and agility as she seemed to almost leap through the air just inches off the ground. Monty would do his best to keep up with her, but often he could not.

Even to near the end of her life, Dot always seemed to come up with the energy to run around the tennis court. It’s something we’ll never forget.

Next week, read about Dot dressing up as a reindeer!

Dot, The Blanket Hound A Pet's Life

The dachshund breed is part of the hound family originally bred to follow and flush badgers and rabbits from their burrows. From the beginning, my wife and I knew right away that Dot preferred to burrow into several baby blankets from when we first placed her into her bed that we kept in our kitchen.

When fall arrived, we realized that Dot needed a larger blanket, so we provided her with a blanket that we had kept in our TV room. This blanket became her favorite to sleep under.

Each morning when Dot awoke, she could carry each blanket, one by one from her bed to our TV room. Dot would proudly pick up a blanket. While dragging the blanket she would hold her tail and head high, and prance through the kitchen to the TV room. She seemed to be so proud to be a little dachshund carrying such a big blanket! She would then return for the remaining blankets until they were all in the TV room. She always made sure she had every single one of her blankets in her favorite room in the house.

Just before bedtime each night, I would ask Dot and her brother Monty if they wanted to go outside and then go to bed. Dot would always jump off the couch with much enthusiasm. On certain occasions, if my wife and I were staying up later then normal, Dot would often remind us by playfully barking at us and Monty that it was past her bedtime.

So I would collect their blankets from our TV room and spread them out over their bed. I would always have to do so quickly as Dot was tired and ready to lay down. Once Dot had done so, I would cover her with the larger blanket, making sure to leave her eyes exposed so that she could watch me leave the kitchen and turn off the light.
Each morning I would find Dot burrowing out of the blankets and rolling over for her morning belly rub.

Next week, read about Dot’s tennis court adventure!

by Aaron Meyer




*Share your pet story and/or photos with us, email jweiss@weisscomm.com and see your story posted here on the A Pet's Life blog.