Tuesday, August 29, 2017

Good-Bye, Sally, We Love You!

Today we put our little black Pug Sally to sleep. She was just about 12 years old, and had been with us since we adopted her as a puppy. Sally was the "littlest girl" from a particular litter. Here she is in a picture taken by the breeder. 

The Breeder's "Littlest Girl"
When we decided to get a second Pug - we already had Lucy - we called the breeder, Laura Derga, and said we'd come out to see them in Iowa. They were just past the border in Farley. We drove out on a beautiful afternoon and got to their home without a problem. This family had three breeding mother and one (very happy, I'd assume) breeding father - Pugsley. Looks like he had a few years on him back then, given the grey in the face!

"Pugsley"
The family would socialize their Pugs by having them run around a family room area with their kids, a boy and a girl, neither of whom was yet in high school, as I remember it. They had turned their attached garage into a room with separate, private crates for each of the mothers to nurse their pugs. It was really quite nice, based on what we saw, and not at all a "puppy mill". This family cared for their dogs. 

Laura brought the adoptable puppies into the family room, where they ran and played and such while we looked at them. I suggested that Nancy site down in the middle of the floor, which she did, and most of the pugs shied away from her. All but Sally, that is. Sally came up and, basically, picked us to be her family. Nancy and I agreed that we would take her, so money changed hands and we started home with our new little Pug. Which, of course, is what I called her as a nickname - "Little Pug". 

The night became quite stormy, and it was difficult for a while to see the road properly. Nancy was having a time with Sally, too, as she was crying and crying. I finally suggested that Nancy go into the back seat with Sally and lay her underneath her coat, to both keep her warm and bond with her. And so Sally went to sleep, nestled up against Nancy.

Lucy took to Sally right away, often laying next to and even on top of her to keep her warm. Lucy was "the motherly type", and could we do it over again, I would have suggested that we breed her. But both of them were, eventually, fixed. So no breeding was to be done in our home.

Lucy "Mothering" Sally
If you've ever wondered about their names, here's how they got to be named what they were. Nancy wanted to name Lucy after Lucille Ball, but I would not agree to that. I'd agree only if Lucy was named after Lucille van Pelt, the cartoon character in Peanuts. And so she was. Sally, then, was named after Sally Brown, Charlie Brown's little sister. And Rocky came to use with a name - Rocky Road; he might have been Chuck or Linus, otherwise.

Lucy (Lucille van Pelt) and Sally Brown
Once we got her home, something unexpected happened - she became my Pug. Sally took to me more than she took to Nancy. We bonded. We were close. And while she grew, she and Lucy continued to get along, and Lucy continued to be Nancy's Pug, while Sally was mine.

A Young Sally, Sleeping On My Chest
But then, at some point, I went on a two-week trip for Hollister to Fredensborg, Denmark. And when I came back, she wouldn't have anything to do with me. We lost that closeness. But she didn't completely reject me, we simply weren't as close. She and Lucy competed for space up against Nancy. But I got the leftovers, for whenever one of the dogs had to move, they generally came over by me.

One thing about us - we took our dogs on vacation, "Up North" to the Kelderhouse's cabin in northern Wisconsin. The Pugs got along well with the Kelderhouse's Giant Schnauzers, so there was never an issue. I can remember one time when we were sitting around the picnic table, and Sally was being chased by the bigger dog. The Giant couldn't catch her - she was too fast - and when Sally came by us, looking back over her shoulder, the intake out exhaling of her breath made it sound like she was a little train engine! After a bit of this, the dogs would go and pile onto the floor inside the cabin and nap together.

Dopita's and Kelderhouse's At Bond Falls Flowage, With Dogs
The kids had a lot of fun with the dogs, too. There was a time when they though it would be hilarious for Nancy to carry Sally around in a little bag. So Amy, I think, bought a Pet Bag for the dog and Kerry and her had a riot with the whole idea. Sally was not enamored with it, and she rapidly grew to be too big for it, but it was fun while it lasted.

Kerry And Nancy With Sally's Pet Bag (Sally Is Not Amused)
One thing about Pugs - they love to eat. Lucy and Sally used to dance around the kitchen when it was time to eat. Lucy would spin in circles. And even to her last, Sally would bark and jump around, just being soooo happy to get her dinner. And it could even be a little bit of food that they would go after. Kerry, for fun, put a morsel of something just outside Lucy's reach on the picnic table, then had a laugh as Lucy tried and tried and tried to get it.

Sally had an issue back when she was just little. One of Tim's friends came over with a bag of Oreo cookies, which they didn't eat, but when they went out he left the bag on the floor of one of the bedrooms. My dad, who was living with us at the time, kinda watched the dogs, but he couldn't really keep a sharp eye on them, so when Nancy came home and saw Sally she asked him what she got into. Want to guess? The Oreo cookies.

Sally's stomach was just jammed full. She had to be taken to the vet, who gave her hydrogen peroxide in order to induce vomiting. Now, this was still a little Pug, not a full-grown dog. And when she quit heaving stuff up, she had emptied a cup and a half of cookie bits from her stomach! Needless to say, we were not happy with the whole thing, but she lived a long time after that . . . and ate a whole lot of other things, I'm sure.

A little over nine years ago, when Lucy was three and Sally two, my boss retired from work. She started volunteering at Save-A-Pet, helping take dogs to veterinarians and the like. I made an off-hand comment to her, something like, "let us know if the ever get a Pug". A few weeks later, she tells me they've just gotten a Pug. And a couple of weeks after that, Rocky comes home with us, and The Mighty Pug Trio was born.

Rocky was a good Pug. He "hit the ground running" with us, eating only his food, never messing in the house, and generally getting along well with the other two dogs. The most competition I saw between him and one of the other dogs was when we went for walks - both he and Sally wanted to be "lead Pug".

Sleeping Pugs (L-R, Rocky, Sally, Lucy)
Sally did not know how to play with other dogs, though. I would get down on the floor with Lucy and Rocky and get them to tugging on a rope toy, and sally would simply bark at the rest of us. She wouldn't tug on the rope, even if I put it near her mouth. She wouldn't chase toys I tossed across the room. But what she would do is go after a toy I would hide under my leg. So I could still play with here, just not like the other dogs.

Pugs are comfort dogs, though, not hunters, retrievers or anything like that. And they certainly knew how to comfort my dad, who would often have all three of them on his lap when on the recliner. And they certainly knew how to comfort Nancy, or look to her for comfort and acceptance, as shown in the photo below. And it wasn't just Nancy they did this too - it was anyone who came over to the house. All three of the dogs were as friendly as can be.

Pug Pile On Nancy!
Here's The Mighty Pug Trio guarding a little boy Nancy used to watch (Ben), who is napping in our family room.

Guard Pugs
Black Pugs are supposed to be feisty - my cousin thought she was - but Sally seemed to get along with all the other dogs in the family. Whether Jack - Kate and Tim's dog - or Bailey - Kerry and Luke's dog - or Piper - Matt and Amy's dog - Sally would pretty much warm up to or ignore them (though Bailey would not be ignored, as a puppy). She loved to go out on the deck and lay in the sun, as she is doing with Jack in the photo below. Later in life, though, she was in-and-out every five minutes, not really wanting to be in either place for too long.

Sally And Jack, Relaxing On The Deck
It was just about three years ago that we had to put Lucy down. She was suffering from Lymphoma, and got really sick really quick after her diagnosis. Two years ago, Rocky was exhibiting signs of dementia, then started "going" in the house (both pee and poo), when he had never done that before. Given the signs, we had to make the decision to put him down, as well.

So Sally had us to herself for the last couple of years. But, slowly, she began to exhibit the signs, as well. She would walk into a room and simply stand and stare. Not moving. Not barking. Just staring at nothing. Other times, she would bark and bark and bark at something neither Nancy or I could see. she would bark in one room, then go into another and bark there. Was she calling for the other Pugs? Perhaps.

We knew Sally was deaf. She used to run to us when we came home. Lately, we could come into the house and not be greeted for several minutes. and when she was sleeping, she was often "dead to the world" and would be startled to be awakened. And she started losing her bowels in the house. Even in our bed, in which she slept every night.

But the worst thing for Sally was her tongue. It started bleeding right around the time I received my cancer diagnosis. We took her into the vet, and they removed several teeth and sewed up her tongue. This didn't really solve the problem, but it did do one good thing for Sally - she started getting wet food, which she really, really loved! and we were happy to give it to her.

It didn't take too long for the tongue to start bleeding again, and we took her in for a second surgery. But that didn't work, either. They took a biopsy of the tissue around the problem are on her tongue, but we decided not to spend the $200 (!!!) to have it looked at by a pathologist. After all, if it was cancer, what were we going to do? Nothing. We weren't going to give her chemo - that would be nuts!

So we made the decision to put Sally down, as well, moving from The Mighty Pug Trio, to The Dynamic Pug Duo to The Last Pug Standing to A House Without A Pug. It wasn't easy, but what were we to do? There was rally no way she could be saved, and she exhibited all of the signs that It Was Time. Tuesday, 29 Aug 2017 was her last day here on Earth.

Sally was a good Pug, a good dog and a good friend. She provided both Nancy and me with comfort, she showed us the love that only dogs seem to have for their people, and she made us laugh. There were so many good times to remember - just a little Pug kiss or the comfort of having your friend relaxing with you on the couch. Even going out with my "Baby Girl" every morning and evening so she could "do her business". I know I'll get over the hurt, but I'll never forget that Little Pug.

God Bless You, Sally. Nancy and I are certainly going to miss you!

Sally, Autumn 2016







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