My sister’s dog, Irie, who, in many regards was the family dog, was put down today after a long, slow decline. Although physically he was not the same dog he had once been (a happy, frolicking mix of beagle and lab), mentally, he was still pretty with it, and this made the decision to put him down even harder.
Irie was a gentle, sweet, happy, and, well, stupid dog, and we all loved him for it. He was always happy to see his mom, and often times almost as happy to see the rest of us. Devon picked Irie up on the side of the road after he had been abandoned as a puppy, and he spent the next decade+ surgically attached to her hip.
He was an ornery dog- he would run away any chance he got, with the mix of beagle and lab giving him the ability to smell a rabbit at 4 miles and the speed to run away and catch it. He set the Guiness speed record for rolling in dead things, with an uncanny ability to get away, find something smelly, and then roll in it at somewhere under 17 seconds. And he was sweet to a fault, having never met a cat who wouldn’t bully him or pick on him.
He always managed to be in the way- if you stopped short, he would run into you, unless, of course, you were walking him. In that case, a walk around the block would take a good hour, because he had to smell everything in sight. He seemed to particularly enjoy taking his time when it was raining or snowing or nasty out, or if you were just in a hurry.
Irie was the one dog my cat liked- maybe because he was not threatening, maybe because he was calm and would lie in the same spot and Tunch could lie next to him and steal his warmth. Maybe it was because they both loved Tunch’s cat food, which Irie would immediately clear out the minute he got here.
In other words, he was the perfect dog, and I am really really sad to see him go.
Irie’s decline was a shame, and he had aged to the point where you needed to carry him outside and then hold him up so he could go to the bathroom. This afternoon, Devon took him to the family vet on a farm outside where we all grew up, and they placed him on the ground to put him to sleep. Ornery to the end, in his last act, the dog who could not walk anymore got up and chased the vet’s cat.
One last romp, one last act of mayhem. It was the perfect end for the perfect dog.
We’ll miss you Irie.
Ben
John,
You have my sympathy… I had to say goodbye to my 12 year old Basset Hound last Sunday… truly sad day. There is nothing like the unconditional love of a dog. I was very glad that I could make the decision to end his suffering.
Sojourner
My sincere condolences. It’s never easy, even when it’s the right thing to do.
JWeidner
Sorry to hear about Irie John.
Doesn’t seem like that long ago my family had to do the same. We had a Rottweiler named Chunk (Goonies anyone?) who had reached a similar state – mentally all there, but physically no longer able to do much except lay in her (yeah, a girl named Chunk :) ) bed. When she did stand, it was a 50/50 chance that she’d actually have no control over her hind legs and fall back down. Sweetest dog I ever knew.
ThymeZone
We’ve put down two old cats in the last year or so. So we know about saying goodbye to old pets who are members of the family — it’s just hard.
A special place in Doggie Heaven is reserved for Irie, I’m sure.
Ned Raggett
My sympathies indeed. All our family dogs have been sad to say goodbye to over the years, and the punch in the gut never quite leaves.
Jon
Deepest condolences. This is why I don’t have a dog – I once stayed in a bad relationship an extra two years for the sake of a mutt yellow Lab mix.
For all my well-developed cynicism to the world, I am helpless in the face of a canine.
Punchy
Sorry to hear about your loss.
Hit some random happy hour, grab a martini, and drown your sorrow in what promises to be a GREAT WV game.
Great, as in UCant is about to get destroyed. Go Slaton.
Mary
Irie does sound like the perfect dog. I’m so sorry you lost him, but so glad you could give him a kind ending.
jaime
My condolences as well.
srv
From Philip Greenspuns Travels with Samantha, Chapter 1.
Tulkinghorn
With all the gerontological research going on I think it should be possibe to work in a major research program to find a way to at least double a dog’s life.
We don’t need the cybernetics, though I would appreciate sending Glenn Reynold’s brain into space. Engineering a 30 year lifespan for Labrador Retrievers could be man’s greatest contribution.
Dave
Truely sad. Sorry to hear that John. The only thing that makes up for having to put a beloved pet down is the thoughts of all the joy he brought into your family’s life.
Katie
It’s a sad and wonderful thing that the last, best, thing we can do for our pets is to let them go. We should all be lucky enough to recognize when it’s time.
A lovely tribute to what sounds like a very cool dog.
Katie
I forgot to add that Travels with Samantha is a must read for people that have and love dogs.
p.lukasiak
my sympathy to you, and especially your sister. Its really tough having to put a family dog down, even when it is for the best….
Shawn
Very, very sorry about Irie. I feel your pain, as I had my Bo (short for Bodacious) put to sleep a couple of months ago. He was a sweet, 90 pound Samoyed whose back legs stopped working. It was a terribly hard decision to make, even tho it was the kindest one.
I’m sorry.
Krista
Really sorry to hear about Irie…he sounds like he was such a sweet little happy-head of a dog. It’s always so hard to let them go, even when you know it needs to be done. We had to put down Dreyfus 2 months ago (it had to be done…he wasn’t eating, he’d dropped from 25 lbs. to 15 lbs., and had lost all control of his bladder and bowels.) But…when we go for a drive, I still catch myself looking at the back seat, expecting to see him sticking his face out of the window, with his ears flying back and a huge doggy grin on his face. He shared Irie’s love for rolling in dead things…maybe they’re hanging out together and rolling in dead birds in doggy heaven right now.
Shit, now I’m all teared up. Most humans can only aspire to be as fine, noble and loving as the average dog. We’re damned lucky and blessed that they seem to have chosen us to be their companions — we don’t deserve them, but we’re awfully happy to have them around.
capelza
As a friend said when I lost a beloved dog…”he’s gone to where the rabbits run slow and straight”…
Good thoughts for you and your sister and all your family…
KC
My condolences John. It’s always sad to lose a pet (really, a friend).
About eight years ago, a few years after I had left for college, the dog I had all through highschool–my family’s favorite dog–died a pretty horrible death. She was a yellow lab who liked to swim and was always friendly with people (as most Labs are). Though she never really ran away, all through my life, my dad would holler at my sister and I about leaving the gate open. Loud noises could scare her, and sometimes she would bolt if frightened.
At any rate, one night, my parents left to go to the store, but accidentally left the gate open. While they were gone, a lightning storm came through and our dog got scared and took off. When they got home and she wasn’t around, my dad went looking for her, thinking he’d find her or she’d find her way back. When she didn’t come back that evening, the next night, he took the truck and went looking for her in the fields around our house. He did this the next night as well.
About four days after the storm, my parents got a call from a farmer who lived near us. He said that one of his ditches had overflowed. When he finally got a chance to clear it that evening, he found a dog inside the pipe. The dog’s the collar identified it as ours.
Needless-to-say, my parents were pretty upset. My dad felt so guilty that he refused to get another dog for a couple of years. For all the times my sister and I left the gate open, it was the one time that he did that things really went wrong. We’ve had other dogs and cats, but this was a particularly tough loss, especially for my parents, to get over.
Mary
Aw, Krista, not Dreyfus, too! Poor guy.
We had to put our little black cat to sleep in June because the cancer in her mouth would no longer allow her to eat. She was a relaxed, happy, purring cuddler to the end. You wuldn’t have even suspected she was sick. But once she couldn’t eat even the special slurry we made up for her, we knew it was time. We still miss her dreadfully.
Krista
Mary, yeah it was really tough. He had a great run– he was 15. But we only got him when he was 13, and two years was definitely not enough. But, it was time — he was starting to hide away in dark corners of the house, and under the bushes in the yard. I made a nice photo book on shutterfly.com with pictures of him, and captions, and on the last page, a listing of all those little memories and nicknames that you don’t want to ever forget (like how he’d sit and stare at the oven for a good half-hour, and would then raise his paw and give it a very quiet, gentle scratch, as though to say, “Um…I’m waiting. Make with the food, already.) John, I’d definitely recommend doing something like that for Irie…you can get copies for everybody in the family, and then you’ll always have that.
CaseyL
My condolences to your sister, to you, and to everyone else who knew and loved Irie.
That quote “”he’s gone to where the rabbits run slow and straight”… – there’s a version for cats, too: “Where rivers of cream flow/And the birds fly low and slow.”
Our critters give so much – their whole hearts, their entire selves – and ask so little in return. I don’t care quite so much about an afterlife for me, but I devoutly hope there are Elysian Fields for animals.
Eric Lindholm
John,
Sorry about your loss. My dog is 14 and I’m not particularly looking forward to the next year or so. Thanks for sharing this.
Jackie
John, I just lost a cat (10 days ago) totally unexpected – she was “only” 9 years old and I have two older cats – 11 and 12 years – so while I’m “mentally prepared” for those to leave, I wasn’t prepared for the 9 yr old to leave me.
A cat chooses you. He/she can co-exist with you “forever,” but should you be lucky enough to “be chosen by a cat to be his/her bestest budy forever and ever,” you know you have a loyal, loving friend to the very end. And you know there’s a deep, deep hole in your heart when they leave.
As I’m doing, recall and remember every memory from the first day they entered your life – and why. Then we’ll remember WHY they were a part of our lives. And we’ll smile. And laugh. And cry. Again.
Richard Bottoms
My condolences.
Pb
My condolences, John, that’s always tough. My mother lost two of her dogs in rapid succession, one more or less due to old age and the other due more to a freak accident–he was romping, and I believe he managed to hit his spine just the wrong way on a tree or something, and ended up partially paralyzed. It was still tough, because he was still so darned happy! But that’s a dog for you.
Jess
John, my condolences to you and your sister. I’m glad you were blessed with such a nice dog as Irie, and I’m sure he was blessed to have you and your family as his people.
Darn–now I’m all teared up…
The Other Steve
We’re going to look at some puppies tomorrow. We’ve been thinking about getting a little Dachshund to help keep our cats company.
Echtheow the Geat
My condolences, John.
Tsulagi
Sounds like Irie was a great dog, and is a good-looking one in the photo. Never easy to say good-bye, nor should it be. Of course my condolences too.
db
Wonderful obit, John. I will commission you to write one for my bastard boy when his day to go to the “happy bunny chasing grounds” comes. Like Irie, my boy is a handful and gets me swearing a couple times a week – from dragging the trash around the house when there are chicken bones to be found, to rolling in duck crap, to knocking my mom to the ground when she visits, etc. Despite my complaints, Irie’s story reminds me to appreciate those moments he has given me and will continue to give me for a few more years yet.
chopper
i couldn’t even read this thread until i had a bottle of wine in me (and an earlier beer, lest you all think me some kind of sissy). because the merest inkling of a thought of my precious bulldog sophia parting ways with this earth causes me to break down entirely.
plus my family lost a cat this week. he was old, though, and lived a full life. shit, he must have been 16 or so. i even (silently) recited a kaddish this morning at services for him. hey, he was family.
cm1165
Sorry for your and your sister’s loss.
My childhood cocker had to be put down the first day of class this year…talk about a shitty way to start the year. Anyway, I waked her and I will raise a glass to Irie the next chance I get.
Hey Im Irish, how do you expect me to deal with my grief.
CM
Nikki
So sorry for your loss.
Tony Alva
Very sorry to hear about Ire’s passing and please pass along the Alva family’s condolences to your sister.