Today, I had to say goodbye to an old friend, Zena a very loving German Shepherd dog. She was ten years old and stricken with cancer of the urinary track, lungs and possible bone cancer as well.I picked her out of a litter of pups due as she was the first one to always play tug with a glove, retrieve it, and come to me. For the next year I trained her in obedience and basic bomb detection work. However, the bomb detection work wasn't going to work as she was very scared of slippery floors. However, she was a wonderful and very loving companion.
Her only down side was that while she loved to play with my other dogs (if I wasn't there amongst them), she would attack them if they tried to come to me for attention. Through behavior modification I made the situation manageable but I also knew she would be happier to be the only dog in the family.
A student of mine then introduced me to Joyce who was looking for a companion dog. She use to have Shepherds herself and was a very committed dog lover. So Zena went to live with her and was a wonderful companion to Joyce.
A few years ago I got to visit with Zena again and it was a wonderful reunion just like old times. It seemed she hadn't forgotten me at all. I remember her pressing her back into me so I could pet her chest while she kept a watchful eye on Joyce whom she adored. I was so thankful to Joyce for giving me that opportunity to reunite with Zena again whom I had missed.
Then yesterday, Joyce called me to let me know that Zena was stricken with cancer and had probably only a few months left to live at best. So today I went to visit her again and learned that Zena had turned for the worse last night after my telephone conversation with Joyce. Zena was again unable to walk on her front right leg. The medicine she was on was masking her pain and this was the third time that the medicine wasn't able to give her the relief we would want for her.
So today, Joyce and I took her to the veterinarian so she could be humanely put to sleep. Joyce and I held Zena while she was sedated and later when she was asleep I held Zena for the last time when the medication was injected to stop her heart from beating. She felt no pain as she was already asleep. Yet, it was so hard to see her go even though it was for the best to end her suffering. Even now, it is so hard to keep from tearing up while I write this goodbye to Zena.
To ease my own suffering, I remember the good times we had together and her joy of life. She loved to run along my bicycle as I tried to keep her from biting my front moving bike tire, how she would dig with her muzzle to get at my face when I layed on the floor face down, how she would always find me during games of hide and seek and how much she loved to lay in a kiddie pool full of water during the hot summer. She loved that kiddie pool so much that I called her Shamu due to her love of water and her mostly black colored fur. There was also another fond memory of her running toward me in a stream as I prepared to snap a picture of her. It's my favorite picture of her as I caught her in mid air extended in stride bounding toward me. What is so funny about that memory is that just before she reached me, I realized that she wasn't going to stop before reaching me and I was going to get soaked with water. It was just her way. : ) Shortly thereafter though, she learned a very quick sit and stay to avoid me from being water dunked in the future.
I am also so grateful to Joyce who gave Zena a wonderful life. At each of my visits, I could see the love in Zena's eyes for Joyce. She had a full and happy life with Joyce. I am also grateful and honored that Joyce gave me the final opportunity to share in saying goodbye to Zena even though it is a very tough thing to do. Thank you Joyce!
Ok so back to happy thoughts of Zena forever running toward me in a rock bed stream. I love you Zena. Your friend, Michael
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