About a year later, we adopted a black, brown and tan rescue Australian Shepherd/Border Collie mix. The name he was given at the agency from which we had adopted him was "Shep." My son decided we would stay with that name, and so it was; he was Shep. The first night, he hid behind the unlit wood stove. However, he started to come out of his shell, and not long after that, he was traveling in the back seat of my car, gnawing on the seat belts and door locks, and barking whenever we would stop and he would see another dog.
He was very active in the house, and loved the back yard. It often took several hours to get him into the house once we had let him out in the evening, regardless of whether it was summer or winter. Once a wind storm had knocked down part of the fence. I didn't realize it when I first let him out, but a short time later, I was watching him from the kitchen window, and saying "He's not going through that fence, he's not going to go...oh, damn, there he goes." Shep was afraid of everyone, though, so he was walked home by a neighbor who walked behind him, and "scared" him to the right property.
After I lost the house and moved on to my apartments, he patiently sat by my son's side in the Budget rental truck. He made it through 2 more apartment moves after that, each time being patient and never making a fuss.
When we moved to this apartment, I was glad he had a lake with a path that he could walk on. He loved his walks, especially in the summer, when he could chase chipmunks and squirrels. He was slowing a bit by October, but still up for his walks. In November, though, he started stumbling more and the walks were slower. Mid-November was when we started to take him to the vet, and I spent as much as I could to find out what was wrong with him.
Today I found out that his liver and kidneys were failing. He hadn't eaten a meal in three days, and hadn't eaten a full bowl of food in several weeks. He was losing weight rapidly and becoming lethargic and listless. It was time to put him down.
As Shep was the first dog that I owned from puppyhood to senior, I had never had to do this. I was glad my son drove out from Batavia to witness this with me. He cried as much in the hours that he was here as I had been crying in the past few days. I was fortunate that I had been able to prepare as I saw Shep's condition deteriorate. He had to deal with in within a few short hours.
I was amazed how peacefully Shep slipped away from us. No pain. He was there one moment, and then I saw him go limp in the vet tech's arms, and I knew. No fear in his eyes at all. Just slipping out of this world, into, I hope, a better one. One without pain. One where he can run free without collar, leash. One where he can take as much time as he wants sniffing everything, chasing rabbits and squirrels. One where he is happy and free.
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