Therapy Bits

I was just thinking about the other guide dogs I owned, that I had in the past. There were two of them. Goldie, and Maisie.
Goldie was a golden retriever. The most gentle, beautiful dog you ever saw. But sooo stubborn. One time while I was walking down town she just stopped in the middle of the street and she refused to get up. I pulled. I pushed. I tugged. But would she move? Noooo. But you couldn’t help but adore her. She ate a whole xmas cake once. A fruit cake. I sware she almost exploded! Her belly bloated out huge! She did it while everyone was out visiting relatives…when we got home the cake had disappeared! Needless to say we didn’t feed her for a few days after that.
Poor goldie. I miss her so much. She lived to be 13, when she got a heart attack and I did the kindest thing I knew to do, I had her put to sleep. Putting a loved animal to sleep has to be one of the most difficult things you will ever have to do. At least I thought it was anyway. The vet that did it he was so kind, he was brilliant. He gave me ample time with her, he even told my mom to go get my sister and they could be with me and her as she took her last breath.
She will always hold a special place in my heart, because she was my first guide dog. I got her when I was 18. I do miss her so much and I think of her often.
Then my second dog her name was Maisie. Maisie was a cross between a Labrador and a golden retriever. She was just so placid. All she wanted to do was lick you and give you the paw. She was wonderful…and, she always knew when I was sad or unhappy. She always knew when I needed her close to me. She loved to sleep on the end of my bed. She’d lie there all night long and even when she’d get too hot, she wouldn’t jump down. She was a funny dog too. The one thing about her was she didn’t really like to play with dog toys. She had a few but she wasn’t really interested in them at all. She retired early, at age 7. And I rehomed her. Again one of the hardest things I’ve had to do. My only consolation was she went to a good home, with a little girl who was epileptic and had other special needs, as her companion pet. And she had a good rest of her life. She’s 13 now but I don’t know if she’s alive or not. I did keep in touch with the family for a while after I gave her up. They invited me to go see her but I didn’t, I thought it would upset me too much and unsettle her also. So I didn’t go. Sometimes I wish I had gone. But I’m just glad she had a good life, and was loved, like I loved her.
So thats a little about my other guide dogs. I just needed to write some about them tonight. Thanks for reading.
Carol anne