Saying goodbye to Casey...

After almost 16 years, we are getting ready to say goodbye to our very old and now very enfeebled Catahoula hound dog/Lab mix:  Casey.  He has been a loyal friend in every way. He has also been Dianne's protector and a source of mixed blessings for me.  Di is VERY close to this old rounder - he has always made her laugh when she was worried or sad - and even through arthritis, has stayed by her side to make certain she was safe.  He is fiercely loyal, took on coyotes and won, a genuine comedian and a gentle soul despite his sometimes combative nature.

Casey came into our household in a moment of personal weakness when we lived in Tucson.  For years, Dianne had been making the case for bringing a four legged one into our house. So one Saturday morning when I was somehow entranced by a power greater than myself, I found myself in the animal shelter.  I had come thinking we might look at German Shepherds, but they were all too squirelly and neurotic.  And there sat Casey - he had been part of another family who couldn't take his chewing - and he was so well behaved.  At first I didn't pay much attention to this odd little brown beast... but after leaving the shelter we sensed we needed to go back and spend time visiting with him.  And before I knew what was happening, Casey was a part of the family.  It was almost Christmas time and I still recall sitting in the rocker helping him go to sleep those first few nights in a new home.

In time he came to eat my sweaters, pick fights with other male dogs, drive me crazy and work his way into my heart.  He and I regularly had alpha dog show downs because, truth be told, he is just as stubborn as me.

I've never put a dog down before in all my 60 years.  Our family pets either ran away or I was away at school when their time for death arrived.  So as much as Casey and I have had our ups and downs,these past few months of giving him hospice care have been a blessing.  I have no idea how I will feel after Friday except to say I will miss his sweet, stubborn self in ways I can't yet imagine.  We both have been blessed by his time with us and life will be sad and empty without him - but his agony is so harsh that the time has come to say goodbye to our old friend.