Duke Roberts

I read about Duke on Monday, and I wanted to share his story with all you animal lovers out there.  After what we went through with Tucker, I can tell you that that last day with your dog, while he still feels halfway okay but you know you’re doing the right thing by helping him across the Rainbow Bridge, is a wonderful terrible day.  Thank goodness we had that day with Tucker.  Remember, we had just been gone for over a week.  If we hadn’t had a chance to say goodbye, I never would’ve forgiven myself.

I wonder how long it’ll be before I can look through his pictures without crying?

Gone but not forgotten

We lost Tucker a year ago.

I still can’t believe it’s been that long.  In the few weeks after he died, it seemed like the wound opened up every day when we got up and he wasn’t next to Morgan and again when we got home and his sweet face and vicious tail weren’t waiting for us.

The ironic thing about Tucker getting stick and us having to put him to sleep is that the McHusband and I would say to each other from the time Tucker was young, “We just love Tucker so much, nothing can ever happen to him.”  Not to say Morgan’s chopped liver because we love her, too, but she doesn’t give or love back the way Tucker did so, well, I guess we did have a favorite child.

Tucker was funny, protective, sweet, handsome, skittish, cute, loving, eager to please, and full of personality. 

Our Nebolish Mastiff, Tucker. He was the first video subject of our new camera. A wonderful dog gone too soon.

He thought he was big and brave until you came in the house carrying something unfamiliar, or he crossed paths with a kid.  He wasn’t too sure of anyone under 4 feet tall.

He took his cues from Morgan and would bark at neighbors in the cul-de-sac or at the doorbell, whether it was for real or on TV.  He took his job as our guard dog seriously and while the barking was annoying, it was also funny to watch him bark so ferociously that it literally lifted his front feet off the ground.

And speaking of him lifting his feet off the ground…  He was like the teapot: short and stout.  Poor guy, he was just a touch too short to really see out of the windows on the first floor so I’d catch him with his head on the windowsill and he’d literally do a chin-up to be tall enough to raise up to where he could see outside.

If the McHusband went for a run, Tucker would settle on the floor in front of the sidelight windows next to the front door so he could watch for when his daddy made it back to the house.  And he knew when the McHusband got home in his car (so did everyone else in the neighborhood), and he’d get all excited and run over to the garage door to wait for him to come in.

I don’t know if mastiffs are fetching breeds, but Tucker loved to chase his Frisbee in the backyard and would do it until he was exhausted.  Once he was a little tired, his way of prolonging the game would be to run after the Frisbee, trot back then lay down with it a few feet away from you so he got a bit of a break between throws.  But he could never resist going after it if you threw it again.

Tucker loved being out in the yard with the McHusband, and I know the McHusband misses having that big lug follow him around with the Frisbee in his mouth, silently pleading for a game of fetch.  It wasn’t too often that the McHusband could resist spending a few minutes with him when he got off the mower to empty the bags.

Besides us, Tucker loved Morgan and peanut butter.  Our dogs don’t get people food, but they did get peanut butter in the Kongs or with any medicine.  Tucker would have a conditioned response to the peanut butter jar coming out – drool.  It’s like I had to get the jar out and open it and get peanut butter on the knife in 0.2 seconds to avoid the mess and, well, I’m just not that good.  Luckily that was the only thing that elicited that wet, messy response from Tucker so at least it was manageable in that we could plan for it and clean it up right afterward.

Tucker’s last day was probably the hardest day of my life.  We knew we were doing the kindest thing by putting him to sleep before his gall bladder burst (something the vet school said was inevitable), but he was having a good day and it was hard to believe he was sick enough that he needed to cross the rainbow bridge. 

We knew we didn’t want Tucker to suffer any more than he already had from the cancer that had invaded his body so we scheduled for the vet to come out to our house late in the afternoon on Monday, November 5th.  While we awaited that dreaded phone call, we took the dogs on a long walk through the neighborhood then loaded Tucker up in the truck and took him to lunch at a pizza place with outside seating in Fuquay. 

Tucker got his first pizza crust there and it sure seemed like it was second only to his beloved peanut butter.  When we got back, after letting Tucker nap for a bit, we went out back for some pictures and a few final Frisbee throws.

When the vet called, it was almost unbelievable that we were about to do what we were about to do.  Other than being yellow from jaundice, Tucker didn’t seem sick, which made it that much harder to say goodbye to him.  We couldn’t help but hold out hope that he’d get better, but that was us thinking with our hearts and not our heads.  The x-rays didn’t lie – Tucker was very sick and there was nothing we could do for him except ensure he didn’t suffer any longer. 

Our final gift to the dog we loved so very much.

By most people’s scales, Tucker wasn’t the best dog.  No one was going to make a movie about how perfect he was, nor was he IMperfect enough, a la Marley, to inspire a book (thank goodness!). 

But we thought the world of him, and we will never forget our Tucker-bud.

Jerk cats

I don’t have a real post for you today, but if you have a few minutes, you should check out this video of cats stealing dogs’ beds.  My cats will do the same thing and the dogs just stand there, sometimes barking in protest, but then they give up and let the cats have the bed.

Man do I miss that sweet boy.  Don’t know if it’s the pregnancy hormones or what, but it’s amazing how emotional I’m getting over one picture.  I can’t believe it’s been almost a year since we lost Tucker.

But let’s end the post on a slightly more upbeat note.  Our animals have been known to share a bed as Morgan and Tori are demonstrating below.  It’s amazing how some sunshine on a cool day can bring them together.

Happy Hump Day!

Our hairy houseguest

We watched Cody while Chelle and Jeremy were out of town last weekend.

Jeremy dropped him off soon after we got home from boot camp on Saturday.  Shortly afterward, the McHusband settled on the loveseat for a little catnap.  Cody followed suit.

When the boys woke up, the McHusband had a little fun at Cody’s expense.

What a sweet puppy.

That afternoon, we took Cody out in the backyard for a little frisbee fun.

After a few more throws, Cody did what Tucker would do.  Instead of bringing the frisbee back to be thrown again, he took it to the shade and laid down with it.

I headed inside and Cody followed me, darting ahead up onto the deck.

I went inside and had a small breakdown.  It was bittersweet to see the McHusband out there throwing Tucker’s frisbee for Cody.

(And I know I still need to do a Tucker tribute post but if it’s this hard to write about a frisbee, I can’t imagine how difficult it’ll be to write about our Tucker-bud and what he meant to us.)

But back to Cody.  I think it took him until 6:00 Sunday evening to settle down and be willing to lay on a bed and keep an eye on me through half-shut eyes rather than being so close that he was actually touching me.

Cody is a very sweet, well-behaved dog who is welcome to stay with us any time.

TGIF!  Our area’s supposed to get snow starting around noon today so we’ll see what kind of mess that makes.  Schools are already scheduled to get out three hours early so hopefully once the kids get home, the roads won’t be so crowded and I can make it safely home without sitting in traffic.

Have a great weekend!

Not ready yet

I was going to do a Tucker post today so I was going through some pictures, and it was like two days instead of two weeks had passed since...  Well, you know.

I’m mostly okay on an everyday basis, but some things, like the McHusband popping a dishtowel at me or me vacuuming Tucker’s  normal spot behind the couch, will make me sad.

So instead of starting a gray Monday out on a low note, I’ll put that post off until I can write it through fewer tears.  In the meantime, let’s think about something happier, shall we?

I let Morgan out Saturday afternoon and she immediately found some sunshine and rolled around in the leaves.  The McHusband grabbed the camera and they had a little photoshoot.

I swear, Morgan is a cat in a dog’s body.  She’s perfectly happy not being in the same room as us, she rarely meets us at the door when we get home, she sleeps 22 hours a day, and she craves sunshine like someone who’s spent the winter in Alaska.

Did I mention she’s part giraffe, too?

We’re thankful that in her old age (she’s 8.5 years old – that’s up there for a Great Dane), she’s so healthy.  Sure, she groans a little when she gets up, and the white fur is slowly taking over her face, but she’s not on any medications and she still gets excited to go for a walk or when she thinks there’s a squirrel in the yard.

My Morgie-poo.

Vicious!

Tucker didn’t care too much for dish towels when they were snapped in his direction, and the McHusband loved to torture tease him.

Tucker vs. the dish towel

Did you notice the green things on the coffee table?  Those are St. Patrick’s Day-themed dice that I left there in the spirit of  holiday decorating because I was too lazy to put them away the day after our party.

Tucker thought they were new chew toys.  His lucky day.

I’m baaaa-aaaack!

Edited to add: I wrote the post below on Saturday.  We have since taken Tucker to the NCSU vet school and found out that he has advanced cancer, most likely not lymphoma, which we’d have a fighting chance against.  He has a number of masses, and the vet thinks one of them may be causing a blockage that’s affecting his gall bladder, which is the immediate concern.  His gall bladder could burst at any time, causing him a lot of pain and forcing us to do the inevitable: end his suffering via euthanasia.

So we have chosen to spend the day with Tucker while he’s still feeling okay.  And then we will put him to sleep so we can keep him from hurting too much, or more than he already has.

We know we aren’t the only ones who love Tucker and we appreciate everyone’s concerns.  Feel free to leave a comment here or send an email, but I’m not sure we’ll feel much like talking today so forgive us if we don’t answer the phone or return calls.

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Sorry I didn’t schedule a few posts or make a better effort to write a little something while we traveled last week.  Tell you what – the day I get paid for this little blog of mine, I’ll make sure a vacation doesn’t get in the way of your reading pleasure.

If you didn’t know, the McHusband and I went west to San Diego and Las Vegas last week.  We spent roughly three days in California, then spent the remainder of our trip in Vegas where we met up with Shawn, Vanessa, Kevin, and Eric.  Lots more on our trip to come, but you can check out my Intagram pics for a sneak peek.

Vacation was awesome, but it was really nice to finally get home Friday night/Saturday morning.  Our flight into RDU touched down around 12:15, and we got home an hour later.  The McHusband and I were so happy to see and love on our animals, especially Tucker who gave us such a scare earlier in the week.

Tucker still hasn’t been officially diagnosed with anything, but he’s on some medication and some special food that the vet seems to feel confidant will help.  The McHusband took Tucker to the vet for repeat bloodwork on Saturday so we’ll get those results today.  Fingers crossed that we see an improvement.  Thanks to everyone for their vibes and concern.

And a special thank you to my mom, who stayed with the animals for the first few days while we were gone.  She also picked up meds for Tucker and got him to the vet for his ultrasound, all of which was arranged from the Denver airport Friday afternoon.  Another huge thank you to our friend Ryan K. who picked Tucker up from the vet on Halloween and got him home.  And last but not least, we are so grateful to a couple of wonderful neighbors, Sherri and Julianna, who took on animal duty for the second half of the week.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween!  I can’t believe we’re already a few days into November, which means that Christmas is basically next week.  I don’t even know what I want let alone what to get other people.

Tucker

Just a quick post that will probably leave you feeling very dissatisfied with a lot of questions.  Believe me, we are in the same boat.

Tucker is staying at the vet today getting IV fluids.  We aren’t sure what’s wrong with him.  The possible diagnoses range from pancreatitis to lymphosarcoma.  At least, those are the two things that the vet keeps mentioning.

We’re trying to stay positive and not think the worst, but it’s tough.  I’m not one to ask for prayers, especially not for a dog and especially not when there are actual people needing them much more, but if you’re prone to sending positive vibes out into the universe, could you send a few Tucker’s way?

I promise to update as I can, hopefully with not-terrible news.

We went to Charlotte

I’m not working today, woo hoo!  The McHusband and I went to Charlotte this past weekend.  I wanted to get back there before the end of the summer, or else it was going to be Thanksgiving before we made it to the Queen City again.  Many of you know that if I travel over the weekend, I take the following Monday off – it’s the perk of never getting sick and needing to take a personal day.  Instead, I schedule my mental health days, which my office has come to expect and prefer over unplanned days off.

We headed to Charlotte on Friday after work and about halfway there, I read an email from the McMom that says they’re in the hospital having the McDad’s heart checked out.  He was feeling some fluttering and the irregularity of his heartbeat was troubling, to say the least.  After dropping the dogs and our stuff at the house, we headed to the hospital and spent the next couple of hours visiting, first in a treatment room in the emergency area and then up in the Cardiac Care Unit.

Here we are waiting while the McDad got settled into his room at the inn.

The McDad spent the night in the hospital but was home by around noon the next day with his heart back in rhythm.  We are thankful that the situation wasn’t any more serious and that he stayed in the hospital overnight, which allowed the doctor to get information about what his heart was doing as well as how to medicate him for now.

I spent the first part of Saturday with Bri and her girls.  We went to the mall and I helped Lyla spend her Build-a-Bear gift card, the one I gave her for her birthday.

After lunch at the mall, we headed back to Bri’s because my mom, Shannon, and her kids were joining us.  I’ll do a full weekend recap over the course of several posts, hopefully before too much time goes by.  Way too many cute pictures to share to gloss over the weekend in one Sunday-night/Monday-morning post.

We had gorgeous weather for the drive back to Raleigh Sunday afternoon.  I realize it’s the end of August and summer’s winding down, but we North Carolinians still appreciate a non-humid day before the dog days of summer officially come to an end.

And speaking of dogs…

 

Tucker couldn’t relax until the McHusband got back from his trip into the gas station.

Oh yeah, guess what I’m doing on my day off?  An 18-mile training run.  Wish me luck!

Dog days of August

Morgan had the best of both worlds with this spot: she was in the sunshine but her back end was just touching the a/c vent.

Tucker, typical male, of course wanted nothing to do with the sun.

Halfway to Friday!  And my Wednesday is looking pretty good.  We girls are celebrating Sara’s birthday tonight at Lilly’s Pizza.  I could eat pizza every day of the week and not get tired of it.  Fat, yes, but tired of the seemingly endless combinations of cheese, sauce, and toppings?  Not likely.

And there just might be a chocolate-y treat (or two!) for when we’re done chowing down on my favorite food. 

Like I said – Wednesday’s looking good.