Losing my friend....

Just recently I lost a very good friend and companion. My dog, Han Gunther Geiken, a good old dog of 15-16 years was put down on a Saturday evening after having suffered a stroke that he would never recover from. His passing struck me far harder than I expected, especially after seeing how much of part of my family he had really become by the way my children greived for him. We had a nice funeral for him and he is probably chasing rabbits now, somewhere in a grassy field where there are chicken bones convienent for snacking upon.

Hans came into my life (and my wife's) when we were somewhat pressured by good friends of ours who decided we needed a dog to go along with the one they had. We had had a dog before, but our land lord made us get rid of her and another one that died of Parvo due to the neglect of careless neighbors. I think we were reluctant to get another one, as we had not had good luck up until then, getting and keeping a dog.

Regardless, we went to the Humane Society pound and began to look. I was adamant that I would not pick a dog as I did not think we needed one at that time and I was convinced that the only good dog was a farm dog. Boy was I wrong. We looked at many dogs but one dog really stood out to me. This beautiful blonde dog with black lips and a black shepard saddle. His name was Dingo. He was skiny thing and very standoffish, but man was he handsome. I think on some deep level I connected with him because before I was leaving the pound I had signed papers that I would take him home with me.

Hans was an abused dog as a puppy. He was very cautious around men, especially ones with deep voices. It took a long time for him to forget his bad past and understand that he would be cared for and loved. He was always kind of a nervous, or anxious dog, as travelling bothered him and being left alone was not to his liking. He did love to go on walks and loved to run! He could, and did, on many occasions, out race a rabbit to catch and kill it in the field. He was not much of a hunting dog though, as he was gun shy. But more than anything, he was a lover. He loved people and he loved kids. Or better stated, he loved babies. Of any kind or any species. He adopted a litter of kittens to the point that the mother could barely get to them. Any babies that he met he insisted that he lick them from head to toe to promote hair growth to protect them from the cold and to cover their scent from predators. One of the first things we did with our kids was to strip them naked and let him lick them while they squiggled around on the floor. He would lick them till they turned red if we let them. He would sit for hours lying next to them just sniffing them and getting to know them and vice versa.

Has became a real member of our family. He and I would go round and round about a number of things, and I think that it was a result of the struggle to gain the Alpha Male status in the family, or in his eyes, the Pack. I don't know if I ever really managed to gain that status over him, but for the most part, he was a willing member of the family.

His passing was the first real death my kids have had to deal with. They were there as he had his stroke, they were there as he slipped into a catatonic state and it was the kids the were the first to verbally say that we need to put him out of his misery. I think that it is a day that they will remember for a very long time. Had circumstances been different, I would have tried to hide their eyes from the tragedy that was unfolding for them. But in many ways, I think that this was a growing experience for them. It made the idea of death very real. I also spoke more about death with my kids than ever before. The funeral helped in many ways to ease their pain, much like the shot that eased Hans'.

I will not forget the pain that Hans went through in his final hours. I know that he wanted me near. He would only calm down when I was there. Maybe he was looking for the Alpha Male to do his part and end his time and suffering. I hope he understood the words I said to him, or at least felt and knew the love I had for him. He waited for his Pack to come home before leaving this world. That is the sign of a good dog. Making sure everything and everyone is safe and well. He found that to be true and then I believe, he succumbed to the old age that found him so quickly in these last few months.

Our whole family will miss him. Konnor, his fellow dog buddy is lost with out him. Pets are more than just pets. I will not take my other pets for granted any longer. I lost a very good friend and one of my best buddies. I will miss him for a very long time.