Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

Shut up, hissy kitty!

The republican ‘Pastor’ of the House is an odious authoritarian little creep.

These are not very smart people, and things got out of hand.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

Come on, man.

Republicans do not trust women.

How any woman could possibly vote for this smug smarmy piece of misogynistic crap is beyond understanding.

“Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on.”

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

It is not hopeless, and we are not helpless.

This blog will pay for itself.

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

If you thought you’d already seen people saying the stupidest things possible on the internet, prepare yourselves.

We need to vote them all out and restore sane Democratic government.

We can show the world that autocracy can be defeated.

’Where will you hide, Roberts, the laws all being flat?’

With all due respect and assumptions of good faith, please fuck off into the sun.

If rights aren’t universal, they are privilege, not rights.

This really is a full service blog.

At some point, the ability to learn is a factor of character, not IQ.

The current Supreme Court is a dangerous, rogue court.

Lick the third rail, it tastes like chocolate!

The republican caucus is covering themselves with something, and it is not glory.

You are here: Home / Pet Blogging / Dog Blogging / Early Morning Open Thread: RIP Blaize

Early Morning Open Thread: RIP Blaize

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From commentor Montysano:

Back in 2003 or so, we were momentarily without a pet. My wife, however, had been visiting the shelters, and so one day I came home from work to find a 110 lb. Lab/Dane (or Lab/Newfie, or all three?) mix at our home. She was 2-3 years old, jet black, with a whiteblaze on her chest and white socks, so we named her Blaize. My wife said that the moment Blaize looked in her eyes at the shelter, it was all over, and indeed it was hard to believe that such a magnificent creature had been abandoned.
__
Blaize was a regal animal who loved everyone (except squirrels, who vexed her), but she loved our daughter above all others and usually waited at Anna’s door in the mornings. On weekends when Anna slept later, Blaize was genuinely concerned as to the whereabouts of her favorite person. When we took Blaize out in public, everyone wanted to love on her, and she was fine with that.
__
Her only quirk was that, if any door was left unlatched, she would bolt and go for a run, loping down the street at 20 mph, grinning
back at us while we chased her.
__
Well, not her only quirk. I wish I had better photos of her, but aiming a camera lens at her, no matter how surreptitiously, sent her
into hiding. Go figure.
__
On Tuesday, she was frolicking like a puppy. On Wednesday, she seemed to not feel well. On Thursday morning, she was having troublewalking, so I took her to the vet. “Probably arthritis, bring her in tomorrow and we’ll check her out.” By that afternoon, she was down and could not move her hind quarters, so we took her back to the vet. By this morning, there was no change and she was obviously in distress. We knew we’d arrived at that crossroads that all pet owners dread.
__
When I was growing up in Indiana, we raised and sold registered Beagles, so I’ve been around dogs all my life. Blaize was in a class by herself: soulful, majestic, and….. proud, I think, is the right word.
__
So long, old girl. Journey well. Thanks.

Reader Interactions

31Comments

  6. 6.

    HRA

    My Tasha was a twin to your Blaize except for the white markings. She passed on the same way as Blaize. With a sorrow that has not completely left me since that day, I offer my condolences for your loss of Blaize.

  9. 9.

    wonkie

    Sorry for yur loss and your daughter’s loss. I don’t know how a person can throw away oa dog or neglect one or abuse one given the love they offer us.

  10. 10.

    JPL

    Montysano, The rescue posts are my favorite and even though I have tears in my eyes, I thank you for sharing Blaize’s story.

  11. 11.

    Sweet Fanny Adams

    Sorry for your loss, Montysanto. Blaize was a beautiful dog, in form and spirit. Rest well, Blaize.

  14. 14.

    Kristine

    Condolences. Blaize was a beauty. And a smarty. Oh, don’t they make life fun.

    “You come back here right now!”

    ::dog looks back at you, then runs faster::

  15. 15.

    Montysano

    Thanks for the kind wishes, everyone.

    I wouldn’t mind giving it a couple of weeks, but Mrs. Monty is already on the job: a mastiff/whippet mix at a nearby shelter. We may take a ride and visit this little fellow.

  17. 17.

    Montysano

    @Derek:

    Did the vet have any idea what happened here?

    Nothing other than “This is not uncommon in big dogs”. Apparently they tend to go down quickly, and when they do, they don’t get back up.

  18. 18.

    Keith G

    In a few moments, I need to leave my back of the house work area and interact with others. With red eyes.

    Such a sweet story of a sweet girl.

  19. 19.

    Jman

    Blaize will live forever in your hearts. It is a good place to be with good memories forever. Pictures and movies are too bitter sweet to watch without tears. Hope you will find another dog as sweet as Blaize.

  22. 22.

    trollhattan

    Jeez, very sorry to read this. Blaize sounds like a wonderful pooch. My best wishes to you and your family.

  27. 27.

    Justine

    Thank you for this sad and beautiful account of Blaize’s life. I’m sorry that you have lost her. Special condolences to Anna Ruth. Gratitude to all of you for giving her a loving home and enjoying very special personality.

  28. 28.

    beckya57

    I’m so sorry. We’ve been through that so many times (we adopt adult rescue dogs and cats). Go ahead and get a new dog, you won’t regret it.

  30. 30.

    Capri

    @beckya57:

    Agree – I think he’ll grow up to look a lot like the dog I have.

    The chances of this puppy actually being the offspring of a whippet and a mastiff = 0
    For starters, he’s going to have long hair. But that doesn’t take away from the cute.

  31. 31.

    Journeywoman

    @Montysano:

    IANAV, but it sounds a lot like what happened with our Siamese (and also happens in dogs): heart disease causes them to throw a blood clot which lodges in the blood vessels that feed the lower body; starved of blood, the hindquarters become wobbly and soon paralyzed altogether. It’s a painful process (think unending, sharp pins-and-needles), and when it reaches this stage, the prognosis is very poor.

    In most animals, it happens suddenly and deteriorates quickly, but in our cat, she was throwing off a series of microclots that she’d recover from, and it took a couple weeks and lots of tests to diagnose it. They kept saying, “Usually it presents like this,” and give the description above, then proceed to tell us how she wasn’t following the usual progression. She always was stubborn…

    My condolences on your loss. I don’t know if it’s worse to have it happen suddenly or to have it drag out for a month, but the pain is no easier either way.

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