"Bandit"
November
6, 1995 to October 16, 2003 |
We love
you sweet boy,
you will
always have a very special place our hearts.
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I would like to
speak of your life and not your death as you brought so
much to our lives.
When we got you,
you were a “tough” guy, needing no one. You
see Bandit (Border Collie mix) was born in November of 1995
in Wisconsin. At 9 weeks... he decided to see the world
on his own. The winter of 1995 was one of the worst on record
with temperatures, well into the below zero range and with
wind chills forcing it to feel like it was 40 below. This
is the time when Bandit took off on his own. He was gone
for almost 2 weeks before being found under a porch 6 miles
from home. The night we picked you up, you were covered
in blood; you had just had a spat with one of your brothers
over a hunk of meat. We cleaned you up, no puncture wounds
on you! The grandkids love to hear the story about how we
got the dog with “two black eyes, one black ear and
a black ring around his tail”.
For the next year
or so you let us know in no uncertain terms that you were
your own dog. You put up with us and the fact you had to
be a “house” dog. But what a joy you were! One
accident in the house and never another, even when our dog
sitter forgot you and you went over 12 hours without being
let out. Your only problem was that you loved to dig, but
we soon came to an understanding even about that.
At some point
after the first year you must have decided that we were
“okay” and the love you bestowed on us was mind
boggling. You went everywhere with us, you loved the truck
so much ... that you would ask to go in it even if we weren’t
going anywhere. I believe that you thought it was your truck
and trust me, no one was going to get near it when you were
“guarding” it. You were “Papa’s”
buddy and you were so attuned to my moods that it was scary.
When I was happy there was a special spring to your step,
when I was sad you licked away my tears.
A connoisseur
of hamburgers, at McDonalds and Wendy’s you would
lay on the seat and go to sleep waiting for your burger.
However, if we pulled into Culver’s you would immediately
sit up and watch everything and everyone. You would sit
there at full alert until we came out with your burger;
it was your favorite special treat.
For the next six
years you were the best dog ever. We could let you out,
you would go to your spot under the sunroom deck, and we
never had to worry about you leaving your yard. You and
the cat played your own personal game of chase the cat and
although you could have done harm to her, you never did.
It was fun to watch the cat come and meow in your face until
she got you to chase her, how I miss that. Some would call
you lazy, after two tosses of the Frisbee or ball you looked
at us as if to say “just whose the one having fun
here, not me” and you would go off and do your thing.
Perhaps you weren’t lazy at all; just smart enough
to realize if you brought the ball back to us we would just
throw it again.
You never learned
a lot of tricks; you could sit, stay, sit pretty, come,
roll over and “smile” on command. Oh, that smile,
for those of us that knew you it was beautiful, for those
that didn’t; they would probably turn on their heels
and run.
And then, three weeks before your eighth birthday we took
you to get your 4th ProHeart 6 shot. If only we had known
that the three bouts of head turning to your side after
the 3rd ProHeart 6 shot was a symptom of ProHeart 6 distress
we would never had gotten that last shot! But, you had been
diagnosed with a neck or back problem, so we never associated
that ProHeart 6 might be responsible, or the fact that you
had changed some might also be a symptom of distress.
For the first
time in your life you refused to get into the truck and
even growled at “Papa”! Was this some insight
as to what was to come?
All the way to
the vet you kissed my face as if to say you were sorry for
not hopping into the truck. You got your shot without a
peep and off we went for home. You kissed my hands and face
all the way home .... now I wonder if it was to prepare
me for all the tears I would shed in just a few short hours,
that you would not be there to lick away.
Ten hours after
receiving his PH6 shot Bandit had a massive seizure, our
vet did everything he could to save our boy, to no avail,
and 36 hours after getting his ProHeart 6 shot Bandit was
dead. It was the ONLY shot he received that day. He was
a happy and healthy dog until that fatal day. Do we feel
that ProHeart 6 is responsible (in our opinion) for Bandit’s
death? ABSOLUTELY.
I miss you Bandit
and feel so responsible for your death, I can only hope
that there really is a “Rainbow Bridge” and
that you will be there waiting with forgiveness in your
eyes and that you will lick away my tears of joy at being
able to be with you once again.
We love you sweet
boy, you will always have a very special place our hearts.
Sue |
