Tuesday, April 1, 2008

RIP Faithful Friend!


Black Jack was put to sleep yesterday, at the age of 17. Although he was the "family dog", he really belonged to my younger brother. Devin was 3 yrs old when Black Jack was born, so they basically grew up together.


When my sister was much younger, Black Jack would follow her down to the creek behind our house, keeping an eye on her.


One time he got caught in some animal traps for many days. Every single day, multiple times each day, we would walk through the forest calling his name. We passed the spot where Black Jack was trapped many times but could not see him through the brush. I wondered why the dog didn't bark....my dad theorizes that he didn't think he needed to. He heard us coming and patiently, faith never wavering, awaiting his rescue.


Black Jack had been fading for the past few months......the end coming more rapidly in the past 2 weeks. It was a hard decision to make, especially for my brother. He told me, "He seems as though he's fighting to survive. I hate the idea of forcing him to die". I explained to Devin that I had been through it before and while difficult, it was a better option than letting things drag on and having Black Jack's suffering prolonged (he already wasn't able to walk more than a few steps at at time and was losing weight rapidly).


The next morning I received a text: "We are taking him to the vet now. Last night, he began to shudder while breathing, as though in pain"


I feel that Black Jack sensed Devin's struggle with this decision and "told" him that it was indeed the right time to let him go. It was Black Jack's final gift to his owner.


Devin sat in the vet's room, petting Black Jack until the dog started dozing off before allowing the needle to make that sleep permanent. Devin buried him under a tree right outside of his bedroom window, and in the ground he placed a playing card.......a black jack.


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