Today was a very sad day for me. My mom and dad decided to put our dog, Copper, to sleep. So this is a little tribute to her.
One day when I was six years old, I went shopping at Pay'n'Save with my mom and my brothers Joe and Steven. When we went in the store, there were some people giving away puppies. There were only two left. Mom said we could have one if there were any when we came out of the store, so we went and did our shopping, and when we came out there was one lonely puppy in the box.
The people told us she was the runt of the litter, and that she was half Labrador retriever, and half Chesapeake Bay retriever. Over the years we suspected she might also have some Brittany spaniel in her, too. Her fur was bright and coppery except for her chest and toes, which were white. Her tail was curly like a pig's, her bright eyes were kind of a greenish-brown, and she had a small, wet, pink nose. We expected her to be a very large dog, but she was such a tiny puppy, and the tallest she ever got was as high as my knee.
Once, a few years ago, Mom was walking through the grocery store and saw a copy of Dog World magazine and stopped still. A dog that looked just like Copper was on the front cover! So she bought it. As it turns out, Copper wasn't just a mutt! She was a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling retriever, which is bred from Labs, Chesapeakes, and Brittanies. Her looks and playful personality were right on track with what the article said. Ha! So we were right! And we got her for free outside Pay'n'Save, when most people pay a couple hundred dollars for dogs like her.
Copper was soft and loving. I remember lots of times when I hugged her neck and cried, and let her lick away my tears. I remember lots of times laying on the living room floor with her, my head resting on her like a pillow. She was such a good, sweet-tempered, long-suffering dog.
Once Mom ran over her with the Ram Charger. She was a little banged up for a while, but she lived. It was a good thing Mom had been driving the truck. Copper slipped on the ice and went right under the middle, so she was just banged up by the ice and the underside of the truck, not run over by the tires.
Recently, Copper has had a hard time getting up and down the stairs, falling down them more often than not, and was having accidents on the carpets and such. In years past, she's had fatty tumors removed, and never had any puppies, even though we didn't have her spayed until she was 11. She had a good, long life, though, and I'm glad she was my dog.
Tonight we got to Mom and Dad's right as the vet did. Dad didn't want Copper to spend the last few minutes of her life being scared. All the sibling turned up (Copper was Jeremy's baby; he'll miss all kinds of other things, but not this), and Rayna came with Jerm, of course. Yumi stayed downstairs because she didn't agree with what we were doing, I think. The vet shaved a little spot on Copper's front leg, and Jerm held her head and petted her while the vet gave her a bite of a brownie and then gave her the injection. She whimpered a little when the needle was going in, and Joe petted her hind quarters.
Later, Jeremy said she didn't struggle at all, she just looked into his eyes until her own were lifeless. We all petted her and cried, and then Joe and Jerm wrapped her in a blanket and Jerm carried her outside to where we were going to bury her. Dad and Jerm lowered her gently into the hole, and Dad, Sean, and Jeremy shoveled the dirt over her wrapped body. Jay was in the house taking care of Wyatt, but as I sniffled and let a few more tears fall down my cheeks, Rayna gave me a little hug and leaned her head in close to mine. (I decided right then that if she and Jerm decide to get married, I am 100% okay with it, even though I really love his ex-wife, too. Not that they need my permission, but...*shrugs*)
So that's why I'm sad. It's hard for me to have to let go of her, but I know she's not in pain anymore. We're all going to miss her very much.
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