(no subject)
She was the shy girl of our dogs. Where the other members of the pack would be up front and in your face or crotch, Sable hung back. She would be the one to be dancing and wagging her tail, hoping you would notice her standing apart from the others. And how could you not notice her? She was a big red dog, with a bushy tail and huge feet. A simple pet and a ‘what a sweet girl’ was all she needed. If she received that, she would return to her part of the room and wait for the next big event to happen.
She came from humble beginnings. Spencer found her at a friend’s house. His dog had just had a large litter of puppies. Sable was the only red one in the bunch. He scooped her up just before someone else had the chance to have her. Literally. A large red-neck woman arrived too late to claim her. Lucky us.
For the first three years of her life Sable chose to dig a hole under Spencer’s trailer and live there. Oh she would come out to greet you or to get a bite. But basically she wanted to stay in a safe place where she could see everything. It is the same hole that she had her puppies in. All nine of them were born on Valentine’s Day. Spencer braved the sub-freezing temperatures and Sable’s protective nature to haul each one of those puppies out. Sable was not pleased at first but soon learned to love the puppy pool we had set up for her and her brood. She was a good momma dog too. She nursed those puppies for a long time. We had to separate them from her eventually. Each time she came close a gang would nearly trample her. We have Trapper from that same litter.
Sable eventually moved from her hole to the couch, a bit step up in the dog world. When Spencer left the trailer and came to live with me on Alhambra, Sable claimed the one end of the couch for herself. I wasn’t pleased at first with this situation, but considering she asked for so very little in the world I relented. Sable guarded this part of the world. Although I never saw her growl or raise a sneer at anyone during her lifetime, she would bare her teeth at the other dogs if they tried to invade her space. For their part, the others respected this territory claim of hers.
She loved the water and she loved to chase ducks. Many a time I was reduced to running along the banks of the lake and screaming her name as she swam after ducks. She never listened to me either. The lake is over a block long and she would swim it from end to end three or four times. The ducks had it down, btw. They would float on the water until she was just a few feet away and then take flight. The ducks then would resume their float further down the lake and Sable would continue her swim towards them. She had a better chance of hitting the lottery than she had catching a duck.
Sable loved bread. Why? No one is sure but she had a craving for carbohydrates that was legendary. We could be eating croissants in one room and she would arrive from another to beg for a tidbit. Her desire for bread made her a thief. I had purchase cranberry orange English muffins one night after work. I had plans for them in the morning. Toaster. Butter. Plate. Getting the butter into each nook and cranny. Oh yeah, heaven was awaiting me in the morning or so I thought. Overnight, Sable stole the whole package and ate them all. She almost got away with it too. She forgot to get rid of the evidence because I found the torn empty package by her couch. I had a fit and I did some yelling. Eventually I forgave her. I never found cranberry orange English muffins again either.
In the past few years, Sable began to slow down. She no longer wanted to chase ducks, although she seemed to have a quicker pace when they were about. She became more tired than usual after our walks. One day we noticed the couch was not being used by her. We made her cushions on the floor instead. She never gave up on rolls though. She loved to roll in the grass and entertained us and the neighbors with this ability of hers. There was such joy in the roll, obvious to all of us.
Sometime before Christmas, even the rolls became taxing for her. One day she entered the bedroom and never left. Her back legs gave out and she was no longer able to walk. I made a bed in there for her and became a nurse to her. I changed her linen, fed and watered her and spent as much time with her as possible. She could scoot about with her front legs but eventually they too became stiff and unusable. It was time.
We found a vet who would come to the house and perform the last act. I had decided that this would be the easiest for Sable. She did not like rides and panicked around strange smells and sounds. That ride to the vet’s office would be a cruel act as far as I was concerned. She did not deserve that final indignity.
Sable was able to be attended in a room of her choosing, on cushions that had her scent on them. She was surrounded by those who had cared for her all of her life. Those of us, who had forgiven her bread stealing, marveled at her hunting abilities and enjoyed her company. It was peaceful and without strain.
Last night I lit several votive candles in the backyard. The flickering light covered the ground for quite some time. I wanted heaven to know she would be on her way. Tonight, I will light the same candles. I want to let Sable know how much we miss her and how much we loved her.