Our Baby Doc

This is a special post dedicated to our little man Doc...a.k.a. Buddy-sita. For those of you who do not know, Doc passed away a week ago Tuesday. We were so sad to loose him, but I don't want to focus on how sad life is without him, I want to share with you how amazing this man was!

Our dogs are our children and they are such a vital part of our family. Doc was the one that I kept saying was going to be a perfect big brother for Collier, he would be so gentle and patient no matter what you were doing with him. Doc was happy...ALL THE TIME. He was the type whose tail never stopped wagging - and it was a whole body wag, not just the tail. He was the perfect welcome home every time you walked in the door - even if you just went out to take the trash and came right back in - he acted as if you had been gone all day and was just as happy and excited to see you. It simply would bring a smile to my face. Often times not only was I greeted with a happy wagging tail but he would jump up and put his paws on my hips as if giving me a hug. Oh, who doesn't just love a welcome home hug from such a soft and loving man? Doc was a talker. He loved to bark and would bark to get your attention and especially if you were petting and loving on him and you stopped he would tell you all about it. Doc was very content. No matter what situation he was in, he was fine as long as he was around people. Although one time he had to go and stay with mom and dad because Brinkley was in heat....he cried for 4 days solid wanting to get back home...well we really know why he wanted to get back home and it WASN'T to be with Momma and Daddy - he was hoping to hit the jack pot. Ha! Needless to say he didn't! Poor man.
Doc loved to swim and ride in the boat. He always sat at the bow of the boat with his paws propped on the front - he was our hood ornament and the most beautiful one we could have asked for. Doc LOVED ice. You would open the kitchen cabinet to get a glass out and he would come running just hoping that you would share a piece of ice with him. He would stare at you wagging his tail until you gave him a piece. It was awesome and luckily he did share this with Brink and as a result she now loves ice too. Another really funny thing about Doc was that he carried his (plastic) bowl around. As long as his bowl was empty he would carry it around and just lay down with it - so funny.
Doc was very loyal and his unconditional love was priceless. No matter if you would yell or scream at him, he would still walk right up to you with his tail wagging (maybe a little slower than normal if you had just yelled at him) but would lay his sweet head in your lap. He was such a sweet snuggler. He didn't get on the furniture, but when Justin was out of town from time to time I would tell him to get in the bed. He always came and laid right in Justin's spot and usually with his head on Justin's pillow. He would be there all night as if he was filling Justin's place. Needless to say this week has been tough with Justin being gone all week and no Doc to fill his spot. Very lonely.

Doc declined fast. He had spinal arthritis and would have days that he couldn't get up. Those days came more frequent in the past few weeks - usually once a week. But last Tuesday, we saw him have what we think was a seizure...well he had 2 in about 4 hour time. The Doctor said that he may have been having them and not showing any obvious signs for us to see. I think that Doc didn't want us to know that there was something wrong. He was so strong and strong willed. By the time we got to the vet he had another one (Justin has to carry him to the car and I'm sure that stressed him out because he really WANTED to get out by himself but he just couldn't) I'll spare all of the details, but Doc died on the table moments after Justin and I had a few minutes alone with him. He went all on his own - we didn't have to make the decision. That was a true blessing because I certainly couldn't have said it and Justin said that he was trying to get the words out and he didn't have to. It was Doc's time to go.
He would have turned 12 in April. He was a perfect dog. His unconditional love and loyalty was the perfect example of 'Mans Best Friend'. He was our first baby and we have so much to look forward to with Collier, but I know that he would have been sweet and loving with him. Every day coming home I have to remind myself that he isn't going to be waiting at the door to welcome me home. Justin and I have both said that we are so glad to have Brinkley. She has also had some adjusting to do. Twice she has laid at the bottom of the bed (yes she sleeps with us) and whines in the middle of the night - I assume she is looking for him. She has also spend more time in her kennel - her choice - than normal. Not locked in but just sleeping in there while we're here...she has never done this in the past. I also think that sometimes in the backyard she isn't sure about things. She often fed off of his calmness and now she is having to figure things out for herself. We're all adjusting to life with out Doc. I miss him terribly and I loved him deeply. I believe that God created animals and that they are part of His kingdom and that we'll see him again one day.

Sorry this was so long...