My Mauser...
 

Mauser, our now 11-year-old Belgian Malinois mix, that we rescued from NY AC&C a year ago, passed away last night. Friends shared his urgent photo on facebook, and I saw it, read the description, and decided he should be ours. I reserved him online an hour before his time was up, and we drove to Manhattan the next day to pick him up and sign the adoption papers on Sept. 20, 2014.

He was set to be killed because he was 10, had kennel cough, and bad teeth. He also had arthritis, that we managed to keep at bay until the last few months. His description spoke to me, because he was described as being like a grandfather, but spunky. My grandfather was always spunky, so it seemed as if he was sent to me. Mr. Kipper, well, humored me by agreeing to adopt him, and driving up there to adopt him.

Spunky, he was. Once he was over the kennel cough, he became very spunky... He pushed a kitchen chair out, hopped on it, and then from there, hopped onto the kitchen table to get to a package of treats. At Christmas, at my parents' house, I stood up, took my plate into the kitchen, and when I returned to the dining room table, found that he'd taken my seat, and was sitting at the table, waiting to be served his Christmas dinner.

He was our goofball--always a goofy smile, usually acting silly, and always looking for treats. He was the snuggler in the pack. He never met a dog he didn't like, and would take off with his stiff not-quite fast gait to go greet a dog.

kipper - I am so sorry to hear of your loss. I've read your earlier updates and hoped it would not come to this. Take pride in what you did and joy in the memories you have.

kipper I also share in your loss. You did a wonderful thing when you rescued him and brought him the joy and love of your companionship.

It's always sad when we lose our too short lived animal companions. But you have Mauser some time and quality that so nearly didn't happen. Treasure that time.

We rescued a Rhodesian Ridgeback that was "too old", had basically been like a junkyard dog patrolling an equipment yard, and had such a marked heart valve insufficiency I could hear the murmur with my unassisted ear.

Güero was with us three years and one day before I had to help him cross the Rainbow Bridge, and I treasure every hour with him. Somehow, he figured what was going on when we took him on, and he became "our dog" - devoted, loving, stalwart.