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<p class=MsoNormal>Having had WAAYYY too much experience with dogs going to the
Bridge (from newborn puppies to 13+ years old), I have seen a variety of
reactions and mourning. Each death leaves a hole in my heart. My
heart now looks like Swiss cheese.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Usually, when we lose a newborn puppy, the momma dog simply
pushes it aside, knowing the status. Sometimes, she gets agitated and
tries to take the puppy from us when we remove it and for a short while (8 –
10 hours usually) will look briefly for the puppy when she returns to the
whelping box after a potty break etc. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>We took one of our dogs to the vet’s to sniff the body
of his littermate. Jesse died suddenly at age 5 after emergency surgery
for a ruptured spleen. He and his brother, Cash, had never been separated –
even for a minute until that day. I knew Cash was simply not going to
understand. So we took him to see Jesse. When he walked into the
vet and saw Jesse laying on the floor, his tail started wagging --- until he
got closer. Then he sniffed him, flipped the blanket off of him, checked
out his incision, looked at me with the most incredibly sad eyes, and walked
away. The vets had never seen this kind of reaction. He mourned for
weeks. It took over a month before he began to eat well and return to his
normal self. He never looked for Jesse – he knew. After about
6 weeks, we adopted another basset who’s breeder had died. He and
Cash were cool to each other at first, but did become best buddies for the next
6 years.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>When I have had dogs that were ill and declining, the other
dogs knew. When the time comes, they say good-bye in their own way.
The day Nick told me that it was time, he went to each of the dogs (who were
all in crates) and went nose-to-nose with them, one last time. Then he
came to me and said – it’s time. When Morey left us in
January, the other dogs all went to him at least twice during the day.
They were not just checking on him – you could tell they were saying
good-bye. Then, first thing the next morning, Morie told me he was tired
and it was time. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>There will be jostling shortly before (in the case of a sick
dog) or after a death for position in the pack. When Morie was in his
last days, suddenly Grady decided he didn’t like Hoagie anymore, even
though they have been together for 8 years. Grady is now the alpha (and
has always wanted to be) – and still doesn’t like Hoagie, and
Hoagie is the least alpha dog in our pack, although he is 8 years old. He
certainly wasn’t challenging anyone for the alpha position – but Grady
isn’t taking any chances. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Get those paw prints now. You can also use an ink
pad(s) to get paw prints. It is easy and one of my most treasured
mementos of King Nick, especially since he “paw-<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>to-graphed” his books.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
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