https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izXROTs0nCk

A few of you follow me on Facebook, and if you do, you probably know that for the past few months, our beloved rescue dog, Arran, has been battling B cell lymphoma. This morning, he let us know that he was ready to join his beagle buddy, Zane, at the Rainbow Bridge. Zane also had lymphoma, but his was much more aggressive. We lost him on August 31, 2019. They came with us to Germany, and although they weren't really close buddies at the end of Zane's life, I like to think they joyfully reunited somewhere beautiful.

And now, I have an especially excellent reason to ignore the Word of Wisdom on St. Patrick's Day, not that I ever adhered to it. There is also an obit on my blog.

Slainte...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/18/2023 02:39AM by knotheadusc.

I am so sorry. Our Bassett Hound died three years back. I miss him every single day. His ashes sit atop my bedside table. It's nice to know that our dogs have been loved and well cared for. Brings a little comfort.

Warmest Wishes,

HH =-(

Thank you. Arran’s predecessor was a beagle/basset hound mix. He had such a great personality. I never thought we’d top him, but Arran was just as colorful. I hate this part of having pets, but as Queen Elizabeth II said, “Grief is the price we pay for loving.” Or she said something along those lines.

And I am glad canine cancer is out of our lives again…. For now.

I'm heartbroken for you losing your little buddy. Thank you for being a good human for him and not making him suffer. I hope his memory brings you lifelong joy!

Thank you. It’s never an easy decision to make, but we realized that even if we somehow fixed last night’s issue, it would be a very temporary solution. I am a big believer in knowing when to stop prolonging suffering and forestalling the inevitable. We were delighted to get five good months with him, thanks to the chemo (which, for dogs, is not nearly as debilitating as it is for humans). We are grateful we could access that care in Germany, and not go bankrupt.

Most of all, we’re very relieved that we could both be there for him at the end. If this had happened last week, I would have had to take him alone, because my husband was away on business. He was finished with that on Wednesday, and he got one last welcome dance from Arran. And if this had happened next week, he would have been boarding, because we have to go out of town.

Bereavement is never easy, but as deaths go, Arran’s was pretty good.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/17/2023 10:28AM by knotheadusc.

Awwwwwww. So sorry. What a lovely animal. My eyes teared up listening to your song and seeing your dog. The video is a great remembrance to have of him. It's almost magical seeing and feeling the bond between Arran and his human from their interactions and closeness.

I love his name. Of course it instantly evokes Scotland, the place of my heart.

The Isle of Arran is said to have been continuously inhabited since the early Neolithic period. Amazing! People from Ireland settled there in the 6th C. So that's two sides of my family tree (third part is English). Apparently the Vikings were also an influence there so what an interesting place on Planet Earth.

It's so beautiful too. There's an Irish poem from the 13th C about its many appealing features of land and sea, berries, nuts and trees. Men too - it's in the poem!

I'd be happy to visit the Arran Brewery and sample their Arran Sunset.

Thanks for the video, knotty. I'm sorry for your pain but it's good to know Arran was with you for so long. (I know, it's never long enough). And the leaving, for him, was good.

Nightingale, thank you for those beautiful words.

We gave Arran his name because we visited Scotland for the first time in November 2012. It was for our tenth wedding anniversary, which was an especially big deal to us. My husband’s first marriage had ended just shy of ten years, so we were excited to be celebrating ten happy years together. And I wanted to see Scotland, where a lot of my ancestors originated.

At the time of our 2012 trip, we had an old beagle/basset hound named MacGregor and another beagle named Zane. MacGregor had been on steroids, because we thought he had disk disease. While we were away in Scotland, MacGregor was weaned off of the Prednisone, and he very quickly decompensated. We found out about it while we were on our cruise in Scotland, which called at several ports in Arran. It is a very beautiful place, as you said.

We came back home from our trip and took MacGregor to the vet hospital at NC State to find out what was wrong. He had a MRI and the veterinary neurologist discovered that MacGregor had a very aggressive and malignant spinal tumor, and nothing could be done to help him. We lost him the week before Christmas in 2012.

A month later, we adopted Arran, who was then called CD. He had previously been adopted by another couple, who kept him for nine months, and then brought him back to the rescue. When we brought him home, I was struck by his beautiful markings and colors, and his friendly personality. He reminded me of the best things about our long awaited first trip to Scotland, land of so many of my forebears. Even as we heard the terrible news about MacGregor from thousands of miles away, we were still awestruck by how beautiful the Isle of Arran was. So, in honor of that trip, we changed our new dog’s name to Arran, and it really suited him.

Arran was an unusually sensitive and possessive dog, which is probably why he was brought back to the rescue. He was a pleasure growler, and had a short temper, although he never bit people. Sometimes he would get jealous of Zane, and later Noyzi, and fight with them. I always got the sense, though, that he felt misunderstood. He seemed to worry a lot about being rehomed again.

As you can see in the video, Arran was very attached to my husband. I have hundreds of photos with them adoring each other. I feel like he never got over that first family’s rejection, yet I am so grateful the first couple brought him back. I thought we’d never top MacGregor, but Arran sure did. I actually feel like MacGregor was always with us through Arran. Maybe that sounds silly, but it makes me feel better.

I feel certain Arran will send us a successor, when the time is right. We will never lose him, because he’s forever in our hearts.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/18/2023 02:38AM by knotheadusc.

Thank you for sharing…I think I got something in my eye.