Tuesday, September 28, 2010

A Grief Observed 2

One of those days!  I got a phone call from my step-daughter around 10 that something was wrong with our Great Dane.  So I took him to the vet.  One thing led to another.  X-ray showed that his intestines had twisted around his stomach and spleen.  First they tried to depressurize.  Then emergency surgery.  Then I was getting my kids out of school to say good bye before they euthanized him.

Such is life and such is a small trial run for bigger crises and tragedies.  I heard the familiar yawn of Bruce this morning at 6:10 saying, "I'm ready to go out and eat now."  He scarfed down his food--the ultimate cause of the problem.  Big dogs sometimes gulp down too much air because they eat too quickly.  Six hours later he was dead.

Telling my children is the hardest part, a microcosm of deeper griefs.  "We'll get through this."  The great "No" that is impossibility.  Keep active.  Keep moving.  Get your mind on other things.  Tomorrow will be a little better and the next day a little better.  It won't hurt any more than it hurts right now.

7 comments:

James F. McGrath said...

Condolences to you and your family, Ken.

Ken Schenck said...

Thanks James.

Jonathan said...

I'm very sorry to hear this Ken. My thoughts are with you and your family.

Ken Schenck said...

Memories 1: Bruce was only a little over 2 years old, but he had grown into a great dog. There were the challenges of a puppy--especially such a big one. We lost our shizu right after we got Bruce--kids left the gate open and no one ever returned her. But we were a little worried that Bruce would break her back by stomping on her. Princess was never able to dominate Bruce because Bruce was bigger than her already a month into his time with us.

He could look over our fence, scaring passers by, watching me run by. He could get on the trampoline and did. He would try to sit on my lap, which usually involved one hip. He could let himself in and out the back door for a long time by grabbing the mesh we had there...

Ken Schenck said...

Memories 2: At last Fall I took him to training. He would jump up on Tom and Soph and knock them down, which usually hurt. We were unsure around him around other animals, including some cats in our lives. (He actually had Miley in his mouth this summer, not trying to hurt her but just trying to get her to stop).

I dreaded the training at the armory once a week. I would leave inevitably drenched in sweat from trying to manage Bruce and keep him from eating the other dogs. The first night he scared Zsa Zsa Gabor and her little ball of fluff. The woman never came back.

For the last month, we have an Australian Blue Healer that has practically bit the spit out of Bruce's mouth. Bruce would get on the trampoline just to get a break from this ADHD dog. Bruce would hold a rope in his mouth and the little yapper would jump to try to get it...

Rick said...

Sorry to read about your loss.

Angie Van De Merwe said...

Thanks for sharing about your dog. I enjoyed entering into your world for a little while...Sorry for the loss of such a great gift of a dog. Blessings to all of you.