All too suddenly
All too suddenly, Our house is much too quiet.
All too suddenly, There is no one to come to the gate to welcome me home.
All too suddenly, There are too many leashes on the rack for only a one dog household.
All too suddenly, I don’t have to struggle to get dressed in the morning, as a
furry head forces
itself between my legs and tries to lick my face.
All too suddenly, I don’t have to fight to keep my place in the bed at night.
All too suddenly, We have a lot of Halloween costumes that will go unused.
All too suddenly, Our doorbell doesn’t sound loud enough.
All too suddenly, The squirrels have unfettered reign of our back yard.
All too suddenly, I don’t have a teammate to pull our cart.
All too suddenly, I don’t know what we are going to do for a mascot for our draft
tests.
All too suddenly, I don’t think I’ve taken quite enough pictures.
All too suddenly, The kitchen now seems plenty large enough to actually get around in.
All too suddenly, I might have to join a gym because I don’t have to do the low
hurdles around the house, any more.
All too suddenly, I don’t have to get up in the middle of the night to let someone
out or back in.
All too suddenly, There isn’t enough Berner fur on the floor.
All too suddenly, last Friday we had to put our dog Ranger (formally known as Swiss
Star’s Black Badge of Curage, CGC, HCT, CD, NDD) down at the age of 10yrs and eight
months because of bloat and gastric torsion. Within a half-hour of discovering
Ranger’s problem, we were at the Emergency Vet’s. An hour later, after X-rays, we
let him go. We had recently helped him through a serious bout of pneumonia, which gave
us a couple of months of extra quality time to pamper him. That is time we will
always cherish.
For those of you that knew him, he led a blessed life. He was the dog who knew
how to dance the hokey-pokey and performed a dozen or more tricks. He was the ever-
tolerant dog that gave rides to the kids in the neighborhood in his cart. He loved to
wear costumes and was the ever-popular clown dog at Halloween. His great personality
made him the premier ambassador for the breed. He was my able team-mate for obedience
and was the consummate demo dog when it came to demonstrating draft work technique at
our clinics. He gave me the opportunity to get involved with our regional club as well
as the national club. He gave me the opportunity to get to know a huge group of people
known as the Berner-L, many of you that have become corresponding friends. Give your
own dogs a special hug tonight because there will come a day when you can’t.
Rest in Peace dear friend, I love you and will always remember you, you were a special
dog.
Jim and Anna LaFrom and Logan, who now thinks he is the King of the House
San Jose, CA
