A few months after the White German Shepherd I inherited from my late father died, I was lucky to take in the smartest dog I've ever met, a German Shepherd named Lady. She needed a new home because she understandably misidentified a Chihuahua puppy living next door as a menace, and killed the poor thing in front of two children. Fearing for the lives of the rest of the litter, Lady's owner decided the best thing to do was find her a new home.

Lady thrived here on my 42 acres. Plenty of wild game to terrorize, as well as the Frankie the mailman and Ralph, from UPS. Lady did not like delivery services. A few months after her arrival, my sister visited from Florida with her family and their 2 dogs. Some sort of beacon must have been broadcast, the morning after their arrival a pack of 5 dogs showed up. They all deferred to Lady, so everyone got along. I didn't feed them, they all looked like they had homes. Collared, well fed and had the red tattoo indicating they'd been fixed. Four eventually wandered away but one stayed. A dark brown lab mix that got along well with Lady, she had no tags and a canvas of my area found no owner, so I kept her and named her Tramp, which seemed right on many levels.

The two became fast friends, with a shared interest in hunting, wresting and chasing cars up and down my lengthy driveway. I counted the carcasses or remains of at least 13 different animal species, including a beaver tail and spine, several deer bones, box turtles, various rodents, a rat snake (from which several egg sacs flew after splitting open when Lady and Tramp used it to play Tug-of-War) and in one sad case, a kitten who was dispatched to the next world with stunning efficiency by Lady. Their favorite times were following the tractor as it mowed our hay, pouncing on the birds and rodents killed by the mower blades. The hay fields were their favorite hunting grounds all year as well.

Lady's aggression got her into trouble. She had to have her tail amputated after getting dragged under the rear end of a car turning around at the head of our driveway. A year after that her left rear leg got mangled in an encounter with a small pack of coyotes. She became well known at our vet's office. 

Late last summer Tramp started reverse sneezing and coughing, as if something was obstructing her breathing. Around the same time I noticed when petting Lady she would move her body until my hand was petting her hind quarters. I thought maybe she was having phantom pains where her tail used to be. I was more concerned with Tramp. The vet thought it may have been congestive heart failure, then a fungal infection, then chronic rhinitis. She seemed to respond to antibiotics and stabilized a bit, then in mid december Lady started having problems with her back legs. She had difficulty getting to her feet after lying down, then unsteady on her feet at times. Her blood tests indicated either an infection or possibly cancer. She regressed quickly, essentially bed ridden by New Years Day, unable to move her rear legs. On January 4th, after a night of heart breaking agony, we had her put down. The best guess our vet had without a CT Scan was a cancerous tumor on her spine. We also figured out that the main reason she was moaning so much was that she was holding her bladder. Good girls don't pee in their bed, and she was a good girl. When she died she soaked the blanket on which she laid.

Tramp was heart broken. She chased the van while it drove Lady away, and spent hours outside the next few days looking for her. I found out later many vets encourage you to bring the other dog in this situation so they would have closure. Had Lady not been in such agony I may have brought Tramp. In retrospect, I wish I had. Tramp's coughing/sneezing got worse, and her breathing become more and more labored. We decided on a CT scan with her, and the results confirmed our worst fear, nasal adenocarcinoma. Normally treatable with a combination of radiation and chemotherapy, it had progressed to far into the bones separating the nasal cavity and both the eye orbit and brain for radiation to be possible and chemo to be effective. She was given 3 months to live, but after reading up on it, I guessed it would be much sooner. I was right. Barely three weeks after the CT scan, this sweet girl who only wanted to be loved, fed and petted, no longer even wagged her tail when petted and just looked at food with disinterest. Yesterday afternoon we made one final trip to the vet, and you could tell she sensed it. She met her fate calmly, even with a bit of relief. 

One of many lasting memories of Tramp was the intense interest in watching television she developed in the last 3 weeks of her life. I remember the very moment, when she was walking under the TV in my bedroom and happened to look up, did a double take and froze, mesmerized. It wasn't just a brief interest in the moving shapes and sounds, she watched. If it was 2 talking heads she would look from one to the other when each spoke. I would show her nature shows on Netflix that fascinated her, one memorable scene where 2 lions were chasing a giraffe had her on the edge of my bed, ready to leap into the TV to join in on the kill. Other times she could barely be torn away from the TV to eat, once hurrying back to see the fate of a rabbit being chased by a fox when her food wasn't quite ready. It makes me so sad remembering the intense look she'd get on her face watching TV.

It's very quiet in my house today. I don't know if I'll ever have another dog, the sense of loss and sadness is hard to take.

RIP Lady and Tramp

---

If something can corrupt you, you're corrupted already.
- Bob Marley


 

They were beautiful.  That’s tough, man.  They are family.  Keep thinking of the good times.  Thoughts and prayers.

---

Oh, man.

So sorry for your loss. They were lucky to have some good time under your care.

---

Jeeze man, you made me cry. I love dogs. I have 2 myself. I had a Rhodesian Ridgeback that I adopted and a stray Boxer that I took in about 15 years ago. Those girls were the best dogs ever. They got along beautifully and were so sweet and calm. My Ridgeback died suddenly one day. We rushed her to the vet, but they suspected she ate something outside that was poisonous and couldn't save her. I was devastated for a long time. I had my Boxer to help me through it though. About 3 years later she went to sleep one night and just didn't wake up. I could tell she was getting pretty old. How old I don't know, since I got her as a stray, but the vet figured based on her teeth, she was around 16. Again, I was heartbroken. It took me about a year to decide I needed to get more dogs. I think Cheyenne and Shawnee would want me to, so I adopted two litter mates that were lab mixes. I named them Dakota and Fox. I'm really glad I did. They are destructive, but they are also great company. I feel your pain man, but the loss will eventually dull and in time, you might realize that having another dog or even two, might fill that void left by the loss of Lady and Tramp. Give yourself time to grieve and after a while, you might have a change of heart. I'm sorry for your loss. They were beautiful dogs.

---

I’m sitting here bawling for two sweet pups I never knew! I’m so sorry for your loss!

---

What in the Wide Wide World of Sports is agoin' on here???

A few months after the White German Shepherd I inherited from my late father died, I was lucky to take in the smartest dog I've ever met, a German Shepherd named Lady. She needed a new home because she understandably misidentified a Chihuahua puppy living next door as a menace, and killed the poor thing in front of two children. Fearing for the lives of the rest of the litter, Lady's owner decided the best thing to do was find her a new home.

Lady thrived here on my 42 acres. Plenty of wild game to terrorize, as well as the Frankie the mailman and Ralph, from UPS. Lady did not like delivery services. A few months after her arrival, my sister visited from Florida with her family and their 2 dogs. Some sort of beacon must have been broadcast, the morning after their arrival a pack of 5 dogs showed up. They all deferred to Lady, so everyone got along. I didn't feed them, they all looked like they had homes. Collared, well fed and had the red tattoo indicating they'd been fixed. Four eventually wandered away but one stayed. A dark brown lab mix that got along well with Lady, she had no tags and a canvas of my area found no owner, so I kept her and named her Tramp, which seemed right on many levels.

The two became fast friends, with a shared interest in hunting, wresting and chasing cars up and down my lengthy driveway. I counted the carcasses or remains of at least 13 different animal species, including a beaver tail and spine, several deer bones, box turtles, various rodents, a rat snake (from which several egg sacs flew after splitting open when Lady and Tramp used it to play Tug-of-War) and in one sad case, a kitten who was dispatched to the next world with stunning efficiency by Lady. Their favorite times were following the tractor as it mowed our hay, pouncing on the birds and rodents killed by the mower blades. The hay fields were their favorite hunting grounds all year as well.

Lady's aggression got her into trouble. She had to have her tail amputated after getting dragged under the rear end of a car turning around at the head of our driveway. A year after that her left rear leg got mangled in an encounter with a small pack of coyotes. She became well known at our vet's office. 

Late last summer Tramp started reverse sneezing and coughing, as if something was obstructing her breathing. Around the same time I noticed when petting Lady she would move her body until my hand was petting her hind quarters. I thought maybe she was having phantom pains where her tail used to be. I was more concerned with Tramp. The vet thought it may have been congestive heart failure, then a fungal infection, then chronic rhinitis. She seemed to respond to antibiotics and stabilized a bit, then in mid december Lady started having problems with her back legs. She had difficulty getting to her feet after lying down, then unsteady on her feet at times. Her blood tests indicated either an infection or possibly cancer. She regressed quickly, essentially bed ridden by New Years Day, unable to move her rear legs. On January 4th, after a night of heart breaking agony, we had her put down. The best guess our vet had without a CT Scan was a cancerous tumor on her spine. We also figured out that the main reason she was moaning so much was that she was holding her bladder. Good girls don't pee in their bed, and she was a good girl. When she died she soaked the blanket on which she laid.

Tramp was heart broken. She chased the van while it drove Lady away, and spent hours outside the next few days looking for her. I found out later many vets encourage you to bring the other dog in this situation so they would have closure. Had Lady not been in such agony I may have brought Tramp. In retrospect, I wish I had. Tramp's coughing/sneezing got worse, and her breathing become more and more labored. We decided on a CT scan with her, and the results confirmed our worst fear, nasal adenocarcinoma. Normally treatable with a combination of radiation and chemotherapy, it had progressed to far into the bones separating the nasal cavity and both the eye orbit and brain for radiation to be possible and chemo to be effective. She was given 3 months to live, but after reading up on it, I guessed it would be much sooner. I was right. Barely three weeks after the CT scan, this sweet girl who only wanted to be loved, fed and petted, no longer even wagged her tail when petted and just looked at food with disinterest. Yesterday afternoon we made one final trip to the vet, and you could tell she sensed it. She met her fate calmly, even with a bit of relief. 

One of many lasting memories of Tramp was the intense interest in watching television she developed in the last 3 weeks of her life. I remember the very moment, when she was walking under the TV in my bedroom and happened to look up, did a double take and froze, mesmerized. It wasn't just a brief interest in the moving shapes and sounds, she watched. If it was 2 talking heads she would look from one to the other when each spoke. I would show her nature shows on Netflix that fascinated her, one memorable scene where 2 lions were chasing a giraffe had her on the edge of my bed, ready to leap into the TV to join in on the kill. Other times she could barely be torn away from the TV to eat, once hurrying back to see the fate of a rabbit being chased by a fox when her food wasn't quite ready. It makes me so sad remembering the intense look she'd get on her face watching TV.

It's very quiet in my house today. I don't know if I'll ever have another dog, the sense of loss and sadness is hard to take.

RIP Lady and Tramp

Sorry for your loss RJ.  It's never easy losing a companion let alone two is such a short period of time.  My condolences.

---

Original Season Ticket Holder - Retired  1995 - 2020


At some point you just have to let go of what you thought should happen and live in what is happening.
 

I feel really bad for you RJ ... But, they sound like a killer couple to me. How many other animals did they kill that you didn't know about? It didn't sound like they ate them, but played with their dead carcass for fun. Were they a menace to your neighbors and the delivery people? I was mauled when I was 12 yo delivering papers. It may seem safe, or even cute and innocent until you're the one on the wrong end of teeth tearing at your flesh. Did the kitten belong to a neighbor, or just a stray looking for death by two huge dogs with nothing else better to kill?

I sincerely sympathize with your loss, and I am very sorry both of them are gone, but it would seem other people, pets, and animals in your general neighborhood may benefit.  I say all that just to say ... is it possible someone was giving a heap full of what they may believe is payback? Poison, or maybe some other form of retribution? May be someone that believes they were being terrorized, and did something to stop it.

---

"because she understandably misidentified a Chihuahua puppy living next door as a menace"

"Lady thrived here on my 42 acres. Plenty of wild game to terrorize, as well as the Frankie the mailman and Ralph, from UPS. Lady did not like delivery services."

"a kitten who was dispatched to the next world with stunning efficiency by Lady. "

---

"because she understandably misidentified a Chihuahua puppy living next door as a menace"

"Lady thrived here on my 42 acres. Plenty of wild game to terrorize, as well as the Frankie the mailman and Ralph, from UPS. Lady did not like delivery services."

"a kitten who was dispatched to the next world with stunning efficiency by Lady. "

In the spirit of ‘being there” for a man in need, I decided to omit my feelings on that aspect.  But since you brought it up...I agree, it’s not cool to let your dogs run around killing whatever is in its path.  Great opportunity for a lawsuit amongst other things. Good thing no Kids wondered onto the property.   But my condolences are still sincere in the time of loss. I just have a knack for being the [BLEEP] in times like this. Luckily, I have good company.

---

I feel really bad for you RJ ... But, they sound like a killer couple to me. How many other animals did they kill that you didn't know about? It didn't sound like they ate them, but played with their dead carcass for fun. Were they a menace to your neighbors and the delivery people? I was mauled when I was 12 yo delivering papers. It may seem safe, or even cute and innocent until you're the one on the wrong end of teeth tearing at your flesh. Did the kitten belong to a neighbor, or just a stray looking for death by two huge dogs with nothing else better to kill?

I sincerely sympathize with your loss, and I am very sorry both of them are gone, but it would seem other people, pets, and animals in your general neighborhood may benefit.  I say all that just to say ... is it possible someone was giving a heap full of what they may believe is payback? Poison, or maybe some other form of retribution? May be someone that believes they were being terrorized, and did something to stop it.

Yeah, I didn't give all the details of those incidents, and I may have portrayed Lady improperly. The kitten had hidden under the hood of my caregiver's car one morning, and had been hiding in my van and garage for a few days. Both dogs had been sniffing around the area, knew it was there. One night it was out, hunkered down as Tramp sniffed it, Lady darted in and killed it. Yes, it was brutal and horrible, but in my dog's view, it was an intruder. For what it's worth, the kitten's owner was sad, but understood and still loved Lady. The other animals were wild rabbits, gophers, rats, field mice, skunks, snakes, turtles, coyotes and a groundhog. Varmints. Much of what they brought back was killed by hay mowers or hunters, such as beaver tail and spine, as well as several deer bones. They did indeed eat much of their kill, especially if it was fresh. We have neighbors with dogs and children with which they peacefully interacted. They didn't wander off my property, I kept a good eye on them, and I never left them out when I was gone. 

All the aggression was Lady, Tramp was much more docile. They were not especially big dogs, especially Lady considering her breed. When I say they terrorized the mailman and UPS driver, both made friends with the dogs, getting out of their vehicles and petting them several times, even bringing treats. But every time they came, they were chased up and down the driveways as if mortal enemies.

I knew she had a mean  streak because of the Chihuahua incident, I apologize for appearing to make light of it. I've talked to most of my neighbors before and after their deaths, they all expressed sympathy and affection for them. I will say this, I'm  a disabled man living alone on a farm in a rural area of the poorest county in Tennessee, I was not averse to people thinking I had a mean dog. I don't know what folks are like in your area, but if Lady was causing trouble off my property I'd hear about i t or, more likely, she'd never come home.


As for why both dogs were afflicted with cancer around the same time, my guess is the 4 applications of glyphosate in 14 years on the hayfields Lady and Tramp loved to roam so much.

---

If something can corrupt you, you're corrupted already.
- Bob Marley


 

"because she understandably misidentified a Chihuahua puppy living next door as a menace"

"Lady thrived here on my 42 acres. Plenty of wild game to terrorize, as well as the Frankie the mailman and Ralph, from UPS. Lady did not like delivery services."

"a kitten who was dispatched to the next world with stunning efficiency by Lady. "

In the spirit of ‘being there” for a man in need, I decided to omit my feelings on that aspect.  But since you brought it up...I agree, it’s not cool to let your dogs run around killing whatever is in its path.  Great opportunity for a lawsuit amongst other things. Good thing no Kids wondered onto the property.   But my condolences are still sincere in the time of loss. I just have a knack for being the [BLEEP] in times like this. Luckily, I have good company.

I appreciate your point of view, and I admit my phrasing made it seem like I thought my dogs, especially Lady, were cute when they were aggressive. Lady wasn't feral, I had several conversations about her with my vet. She was territorial. When I got her we walked my property, established boundaries. She understood and protected within those boundaries. I often saw her barking at pedestrians and bicycle riders along the road abutting my property, she never went on the road to get them, just ran along the property line making sure. She loved children, was never aggressive towards them. As for them running around killing everything in their path, when it came to 99% of what they went after I was okay with it. They aren't called varmints because they're welcome, they do damage.

I apparently did my dogs a disservice in a poorly worded tribute. My apologies to them, and the board.

---

If something can corrupt you, you're corrupted already.
- Bob Marley


 

No worries. Don’t beat yourself up about it. You had a few in tears reading it, I can imagine how you must have been typing it up. Heck, I don’t word things right when I’m in my right mind half the time.

---

No worries. Don’t beat yourself up about it.  You had a few in tears reading it, I can imagine how you must have been typing it up.  Heck, I don’t word things right when I’m in my right mind half the time.

Yeah, I know. And I understand the reaction, especially Sammy's. I had a traumatic experience with a dog when I was 6, I know they can be frightening beasts. It took me over a decade to become comfortable with dogs. I just regret anyone came away thinking they were anything but very good dogs, as anyone who met them will attest.

And it's a sad but sure fact, many dogs kill cats, or at least want to.

---

If something can corrupt you, you're corrupted already.
- Bob Marley


 

I feel really bad for you RJ ... But, they sound like a killer couple to me. How many other animals did they kill that you didn't know about? It didn't sound like they ate them, but played with their dead carcass for fun. Were they a menace to your neighbors and the delivery people? I was mauled when I was 12 yo delivering papers. It may seem safe, or even cute and innocent until you're the one on the wrong end of teeth tearing at your flesh. Did the kitten belong to a neighbor, or just a stray looking for death by two huge dogs with nothing else better to kill?

I sincerely sympathize with your loss, and I am very sorry both of them are gone, but it would seem other people, pets, and animals in your general neighborhood may benefit.  I say all that just to say ... is it possible someone was giving a heap full of what they may believe is payback? Poison, or maybe some other form of retribution? May be someone that believes they were being terrorized, and did something to stop it.

Yeah, I didn't give all the details of those incidents, and I may have portrayed Lady improperly. The kitten had hidden under the hood of my caregiver's car one morning, and had been hiding in my van and garage for a few days. Both dogs had been sniffing around the area, knew it was there. One night it was out, hunkered down as Tramp sniffed it, Lady darted in and killed it. Yes, it was brutal and horrible, but in my dog's view, it was an intruder. For what it's worth, the kitten's owner was sad, but understood and still loved Lady. The other animals were wild rabbits, gophers, rats, field mice, skunks, snakes, turtles, coyotes and a groundhog. Varmints. Much of what they brought back was killed by hay mowers or hunters, such as beaver tail and spine, as well as several deer bones. They did indeed eat much of their kill, especially if it was fresh. We have neighbors with dogs and children with which they peacefully interacted. They didn't wander off my property, I kept a good eye on them, and I never left them out when I was gone. 

All the aggression was Lady, Tramp was much more docile. They were not especially big dogs, especially Lady considering her breed. When I say they terrorized the mailman and UPS driver, both made friends with the dogs, getting out of their vehicles and petting them several times, even bringing treats. But every time they came, they were chased up and down the driveways as if mortal enemies.

I knew she had a mean  streak because of the Chihuahua incident, I apologize for appearing to make light of it. I've talked to most of my neighbors before and after their deaths, they all expressed sympathy and affection for them. I will say this, I'm  a disabled man living alone on a farm in a rural area of the poorest county in Tennessee, I was not averse to people thinking I had a mean dog. I don't know what folks are like in your area, but if Lady was causing trouble off my property I'd hear about i t or, more likely, she'd never come home.


As for why both dogs were afflicted with cancer around the same time, my guess is the 4 applications of glyphosate in 14 years on the hayfields Lady and Tramp loved to roam so much.

I completely understand that point. I live alone on a 15 acre plot, which includes dense woods. It's in a small rural town in Ohio where everyone knows everyone else's business. Most people I know have dogs and many let them run around their farms. We all know who has mean dogs and who doesn't. Although crime is low where I live, there are break ins, by people coming from the city, many by meth-heads looking for money or stuff that can easily be pawned and industrial ingredients for them to cook their drugs with. You need protection out here and big dogs and or guns are basically a requirement. Luckily, I have both. My dogs have a fenced in yard, basically for my own piece of mind, as I know that some people out here wouldn't hesitate to shoot stray dogs on their property. My dogs bark at everything and often times sound like they wanna rip people's heads off, but that's just them alerting me that a stranger is here. In reality, they are sweet and love everyone. A lot of dogs are that way. As far as other animals, my dogs really only see other dogs at the vet and they normally sniff them and wanna play, but if a wild animal comes into their yard, they are a goner. They've killed many, many moles, rabbits, a possum and they had a sick raccoon cornered, but I got them to come inside before they touched it. It was the middle of the afternoon and it obviously had distemper. It was stumbling around like it was drunk. I called the game warden and he told me to dispatch of it and bury the body where no other animals could get to it. I dodged a bullet on that one. Country dogs are different than dogs raised in the city or suburbs. In many cases they retain a little bit of wildness, but it doesn't mean they are aggressive with people or can't be great pets, because they definitely can. My dogs are big babies. I totally understand where you are coming from.

---

My condolences.

I used to have two dogs like theses ones (sorry I don't know how to say the breed in english).





Both were good for hunting. The first one died of old age at 14 years old.
The second one died 2 years after, from seizures because of a head tumor.

It's been 3 years, and I will never have another dog. It's still painful to think or talk about them. They are family. I can understand that some people want another dog even after a loss, but I can't. 

Sorry for your loss Rollerjag.

---

My condolences.

I used to have two dogs like theses ones (sorry I don't know how to say the breed in english).





Both were good for hunting. The first one died of old age at 14 years old.
The second one died 2 years after, from seizures because of a head tumor.

It's been 3 years, and I will never have another dog. It's still painful to think or talk about them. They are family. I can understand that some people want another dog even after a loss, but I can't. 

Sorry for your loss Rollerjag.

Thank you, MikePete54. Wow what beautiful dogs. The first is a Brittany/Breton Spaniel, the second a Beagle. I have these sudden moments where something will trigger a memory that brings tears. It's hard to imagine setting myself up for more of that years from now, but I have a feeling I will, but not for awhile.

---

If something can corrupt you, you're corrupted already.
- Bob Marley


 

I'm so sorry for your loss RJ.  Some people just don't understand what it's like living in the country.

Earlier this morning I was reviewing the wildlife cameras that I have set up on my property (35 acres in Keystone Heights).  Two images of interest were of a bobcat and a coyote right on our campsite.  I've also seen and/or captured images of other nuisance wildlife on my property as well as welcome wildlife.  I worry when we have the dogs out there because of the size of both of them.  One is a miniature pinscher that is my wife's "baby".  The other is a dog that we rescued from out in the woods which is a mix of lab, pit bull and my best guess is some kind of shepherd.  While the lab/pit/shepherd mix is plenty large enough to defend herself, she is no match for a coyote or a pack of them.

Dogs (no matter the breed) are companions and very protective.  My dogs have killed snakes and other varmints that are undesirable.  They will do their best to protect not only myself and my wife, but also our property which is their territory.  At the same time they co-exist with our 2 cats and sometimes even play with them.  If an "outside" cat came onto our property, I don't think that they would take too kindly to that unless it was us that brought it onto the property.

My advice is to get another pup or two.  It's hard at first, but you will still build that bond that you had with your other two.

---

There are 10 kinds of people in this world.  Those who understand binary and those who don't.

I'm so sorry for your loss RJ.  Some people just don't understand what it's like living in the country.

Earlier this morning I was reviewing the wildlife cameras that I have set up on my property (35 acres in Keystone Heights).  Two images of interest were of a bobcat and a coyote right on our campsite.  I've also seen and/or captured images of other nuisance wildlife on my property as well as welcome wildlife.  I worry when we have the dogs out there because of the size of both of them.  One is a miniature pinscher that is my wife's "baby".  The other is a dog that we rescued from out in the woods which is a mix of lab, pit bull and my best guess is some kind of shepherd.  While the lab/pit/shepherd mix is plenty large enough to defend herself, she is no match for a coyote or a pack of them.

Dogs (no matter the breed) are companions and very protective.  My dogs have killed snakes and other varmints that are undesirable.  They will do their best to protect not only myself and my wife, but also our property which is their territory.  At the same time they co-exist with our 2 cats and sometimes even play with them.  If an "outside" cat came onto our property, I don't think that they would take too kindly to that unless it was us that brought it onto the property.

My advice is to get another pup or two.  It's hard at first, but you will still build that bond that you had with your other two.

You trying to vindicate killing other peoples pets? Like saying "some people don't understand what it's like (Enter bad behavior here)" ... Anytime you start with the phrase "Some People" you are aiming to tarnish those peoples life, experiences, opinion, or history. Some people don't know what it's like having pets killed by predatory animals ... "Some people" don't understand what its like to work for a living ... Some people don't understand ... Blah blah blah.  Don't diminish people as "Some people"  OPLM ... Other Peoples Lives Matter, not just you "Country Folk".

---

I'm so sorry for your loss RJ.  Some people just don't understand what it's like living in the country.

Earlier this morning I was reviewing the wildlife cameras that I have set up on my property (35 acres in Keystone Heights).  Two images of interest were of a bobcat and a coyote right on our campsite.  I've also seen and/or captured images of other nuisance wildlife on my property as well as welcome wildlife.  I worry when we have the dogs out there because of the size of both of them.  One is a miniature pinscher that is my wife's "baby".  The other is a dog that we rescued from out in the woods which is a mix of lab, pit bull and my best guess is some kind of shepherd.  While the lab/pit/shepherd mix is plenty large enough to defend herself, she is no match for a coyote or a pack of them.

Dogs (no matter the breed) are companions and very protective.  My dogs have killed snakes and other varmints that are undesirable.  They will do their best to protect not only myself and my wife, but also our property which is their territory.  At the same time they co-exist with our 2 cats and sometimes even play with them.  If an "outside" cat came onto our property, I don't think that they would take too kindly to that unless it was us that brought it onto the property.

My advice is to get another pup or two.  It's hard at first, but you will still build that bond that you had with your other two.

I absolutely agree.  We lost our Golden Retriever to heart failure brought on because she couldn't tolerate her cancer treatment.  It was a difficult two months watching the cancer take its toll.  And even though expected, her death caught us completely off guard because we were expecting another 6-9 months.  The first few weeks after her death were particularly difficult as she was the type of dog that wanted to be wherever we were.  And it was horrible that she just wasn't there.

We took a couple of more weeks before deciding to go to the local rescues.  We knew we couldn't 'replace' Hannah...we were just getting a new dog.  Well, we ended up with two.  A shepherd/dane mix and a lab/pit puppy.  I still miss Hannah and still shed a tear on occasion even though it's been almost four months.  Hell, I still almost 'see' her sometimes.  She had such a big personality.

It took a good while for our existing shepherd to get over her loss as well, but now that he has gotten used to the new guys they are inseparable.  They are right at home now and we love them all.  I just can't imagine being without at least one dog, and I love having multiple.  And these dogs will never have it as good here as they would anywhere else, especially since they were rescues.

Take your time, then go to a shelter.  Find a new friend.  You won't regret it and think of how much good you'll be doing for a dog who might not otherwise get a chance.

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I'm so sorry for your loss RJ.  Some people just don't understand what it's like living in the country.

Earlier this morning I was reviewing the wildlife cameras that I have set up on my property (35 acres in Keystone Heights).  Two images of interest were of a bobcat and a coyote right on our campsite.  I've also seen and/or captured images of other nuisance wildlife on my property as well as welcome wildlife.  I worry when we have the dogs out there because of the size of both of them.  One is a miniature pinscher that is my wife's "baby".  The other is a dog that we rescued from out in the woods which is a mix of lab, pit bull and my best guess is some kind of shepherd.  While the lab/pit/shepherd mix is plenty large enough to defend herself, she is no match for a coyote or a pack of them.

Dogs (no matter the breed) are companions and very protective.  My dogs have killed snakes and other varmints that are undesirable.  They will do their best to protect not only myself and my wife, but also our property which is their territory.  At the same time they co-exist with our 2 cats and sometimes even play with them.  If an "outside" cat came onto our property, I don't think that they would take too kindly to that unless it was us that brought it onto the property.

My advice is to get another pup or two.  It's hard at first, but you will still build that bond that you had with your other two.

You trying to vindicate killing other peoples pets? Like saying "some people don't understand what it's like (Enter bad behavior here)" ... Anytime you start with the phrase "Some People" you are aiming to tarnish those peoples life, experiences,  opinion, or history. Some people don't know what it's like having pets killed by predatory animals ... "Some people" don't understand what its like to work for a living ... Some people don't understand ... Blah blah blah.  Don't diminish people as "Some people"  OPLM ... Other Peoples Lives Matter, not just you "Country Folk".

Lady killed one other person's pet, and when I said understandably, that was her owner's description. It was an 10 month old Chihuahua already displaying his alpha male side. He barked and lunged at Lady, she caught him by the neck and tossed him, killed him by virtue of superior size and strength. She wasn't the aggressor. I'm sure the children were horrified, and I understand why their parents insisted something be done. I saw my dad's dog Whitey mauled to the brink of death by two Grand Pyrenees.

I did say my dogs terrorized animals on our property, I was hyperbolically talking about pests I want terrorized. 

Other dogs have come here without incident, all our neighbors have dogs and children, there have been no incidents. I'm sorry my post gave you the wrong impression, that's on me.

I won't make assumptions, will just ask - have you lived in a rural, lightly populated area and had dogs for pets and acres for them to enjoy?

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If something can corrupt you, you're corrupted already.
- Bob Marley