It has been a while since I posted anything but the last couple years have been a little challenging and I think writing about it all might help. First, we lost our lovely boy Jackaroo. Except for the fact he had no sense of self-preservation, he had been in good health for most of his life but I noticed he seemed to be slowing down when we celebrated his 14th birthday on January 29th in 2014.
For the next couple months he was OK and I thought his age was just catching up to him. Really he had always moved so fast it was a wonder it could catch him. Then I noticed he had some nodules, I thought they were just fatty tumors but they grew quickly and were very different from the fatty tumors he already had. Our vet diagnosed Lymphoma and that really there was nothing to be done. Jack was still happy, eating and enjoying his life so we decided to bring him home and enjoy as much time with him as we could. We did too. He still went for short walks and had time in the yard with the other dogs.He attended agility trials and got to visit with friends at SureFire. I let him eat whatever he wanted because I figured that would be what I’d want to do if my time were limited.
By June the tumors had grown large enough that they were obstructing his breathing and making it difficult for him to swallow, though he still wanted to eat. Truly a boy after my own heart.
So on June 17, 2014 we said goodbye to our boy. Our hearts were heavy and we still miss him awful but he had a lovely life and we are grateful we had 14 1/2 years with him. He was a challenge but I learned more from him than I could ever have imagined. Without him I never would have become the trainer I am or been able to help so many others manage their difficult dogs. He made me a better agility handler and instructor too. He was my teacher, friend, confidant, he could infuriate me and melt my heart all in the same day. Mostly he was my baby. I will miss him always. But he left me with much.
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