Thirteen years ago we got a call from our veterinarian asking us if we'd consider taking on another Golden Retriever (we already had 2)...He came from a litter whose mother never had puppies that got bigger than 35 pounds and he was smaller than her normal pups and the last of the litter to be adopted. John said he'd go to the vet's office the next day and decide once he got there...after all, he only had 2 hands for petting and we already had 2 dogs! When he came home, he had this adorable bundle of fur with him - 9 weeks old and 4 pounds...we named him Carson after the Carson City Brewery in Nevada - a lot of our dogs are named for beer brands...don't ask.
This picture was taken about 7 years ago...Carson grew to be an amazing golden retriever. And he got to a weight of 85 pounds. So much for the runt of the litter. He was smart and sweet and a true fuzzhead - he never lost that 'puppiness' that goldens seem to possess.
As happens with goldens, he started to suffer from arthritis a couple of years ago so we put him on arthritis meds....he slowed down and slept a lot. But on Friday, he went downhill very quickly....we took him to the vet on Saturday and they thought he had pancreatitis. We left him there expecting a few days of antibiotics and re-hydration would see him recover. We got a call this morning that he crossed the Rainbow Bridge during the night - probably from cancer.
Carson turned 13 last week. We had him for all that time and he brought us such joy. We can't be sad for him today - he is free of pain and romping in the grass and has his doggy smile back. He had a great life at our house - we treated him more like family than a dog. He will be missed.
On another front, we have many friends in the path of Hurricane Irma and we send prayers for the safekeeping during the storm. We had a couple of hurricanes when we lived in the Philippines so I know how scary and devastating they can be. We were fortunate to only have lots of wind and rain to contend with and not the damage that Irma will be leaving in her wake. Prayers go out to everyone affected and we hope for safety for all.
Thanks for stopping by.
1 comment:
Oh, Sally......sorry to hear about Carson, he looked like a great dog. 13 is quite an age for a dog to reach. We've been getting hurricane/fire/earthquake news here too, things look bad.
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