Oddly, the garden moves forward as if nothing has happened. We made a conscious decision to not remove all evidence of Jasper. His beds and water dish remain, though I did manage to get foodstuffs to the Humane society. Crying involved.
Even with his beds in place, there so much empty space in this house and in us. We three, pack of three. Down to two. We both dread walking downstairs after watching some intentionally mindless something, because we used to look forward to greeting Jasper. To laying down next to him, and giving him the good night pets.
As I think back on it, though, the end wasn't as sudden as it had seemed. He had stopped following us up and down steps. He slept even more than the predator cliche. He had been deaf for quite some time, and we knew his eyesight wasn't great. But those things were gradual enough that we simply accommodated.
He maintained the dressage prance when chasing a stick or a tennis ball. . .and still hiked a couple of miles every day until the last few days. His coat and eyes were shiny. Healthy looking. And he still held strong opinions. It was a shock to see him no longer able to get up, to no longer be able to lift a leg, to fall when trying to defecate, and on the last day, to collapse when we tried to help him stand. I think he gave up. It was brutal. It was also merciful. He made the decision not a decision at all. Was it a request? Or am I just trying to comfort myself with that thought.
The video below was from his early days with us. . .at age 10. He had just learned how to play, after a lifetime of his ranch dog responsibilities.
 |
| Jasper Learns to Play Video |
No comments:
Post a Comment
Leave comments here!