Going Plural: February 2018

On January 29, 2018, I had to take Dante to the vet to put him down. Sadly, he couldn't really walk without assistance, had lost a lot of weight, and he seemed really sad. It broke my heart when he would fall down. It was a very emotional decision to make and a challenging day when it arrived. Mom came to Ames so she could go and be with Dante when he died. He was as much her dog as he was mine. He looked forward to her visits and was upset for a while after she left. She had him while I was in college as I wanted him to have a yard to run in. Like any grandma, she liked to spoil him with lots of treats.
Dante was 15. He lived though a lot of big events in my life and helped me though some of the tough ones. As any dog owner knows, they are the most generous and loving creatures. They will give you everything they have and more.
   I got Dante while I was working my first job at a local vet in Ottumwa in 2004. He was a runaway and was picked up by the sheriff of all people. He was bound for the local shelter but I fell in love with his sweet nature and beautiful eyes (they were 2 different colors). Shortly after getting him, my dad died. It was really nice to have someone to talk to that was not going to judge me but would just snuggle and listen.
     In high school, I liked to drive around with Dante; he was my first baby! He was always ready to go for a ride. Sometimes we would just drive around and take pictures, split a scone at the coffee shop, or go for a walk somewhere new. He was a strange dog but I didn't really want a normal one anyway. He thought that he was a person and liked to do things like sit in a chair at the kitchen table, sleep all snuggled up on the couch, and he rarely barked. When he did, it was typically 1 loud bark. He took great offense if dogs barked in his face, as I think many of us would. He didn't really understand the whole "fetch" thing and looked sad if you threw his toy. He liked to just carry stuffed toys around but quit doing it as he got older.
   Dante grew up with 3 other dogs; I guess they were his pack. Bosco (my sister's 130 lb german shepherd, died at age 7), Sonny (a wiry black schnauzer that he liked to wrestle with), and Maggie (a golden corgi). He outlived them all, but they sure had a lot of fun playing together.
       One of Dante's favorite things was SNOW! He loved it! In his youth he really moved fast and could jump garden fences, race around the yard fast, and bounce around in the snow. He loved to eat it, too. Dogs are really like kids sometimes. I loved this dog so much. Before I got married, he slept in my bed and snuggled with me on the couch to watch movies.
   When I was pregnant with Riley, he tore his CCL (basically the same as our ACL) then had to have surgery and go though rehabilitation. I was really worried about him because he was a quiet dog and didn't have a flare for the dramatic, so if he was acting hurt, something was really wrong. When the vet was showing me the x-rays he brought to my attention that Dante had a BB in his leg. Someone had shot him before I had him and I never knew.
      Dante didn't really pay attention to where he was going (I did see him walk into a wall once, only once) and would just walk through people instead of around them, which was troublesome with kids, but he was otherwise a kind and loving, but clumsy, dog. He wasn't sure what was going on when we started having kids. There is one picture that I love of a young Riley petting him and probably pulling hair and his face is saying, "Please help me, what is this thing?". I feel badly about it, but because he was always knocking them down I kept him to his blanket sometimes, usually when the house was full with more people.
As I have strolled down memory lane it has been brought to my attention how much Dante had changed and how old he really was. He was no longer able to do some of the things of his youth but I didn't notice until I was thinking about it. I also noticed the difference when I was dog-sitting for a neighbor with a dog who was much younger. The energy level was so different. I guess it was time, but I wasn't ready, even though I thought I could prepare my mind for letting him go.

     I loved Dante very much. He was with me when my dad died, when I graduated high school, then college, becoming a wife, becoming a homeowner, becoming a mom, losing Kyla and so much more. He always greeted me at the door and was happy to see me until he couldn't get up to do it anymore. He was a constant comforting presence in my life, and I mourn the loss of not having him anymore. He was a great dog and could never be replaced.