- Joined
- Feb 27, 2001
- Messages
- 12,169
Doc came into our lives in early June of 1996. We picked him out of a litter of puppies because of all the collie pups there Doc seemed to be the most docile and loveable. Boy were we right. We named the puppy Doc after Doc, one of the Seven Dwarfs because he would be “good for what ails you” We were right on that score too.
Doc was the most gentle and loving Collie one could ever wish for. He was a friend, a good shepherd and above all a fantastic dog for my children. Doc at an early age saved my youngest son from drowning. We live on a large piece of property with a pond. At the time our youngest son Aaron was a toddler. My wife stepped into the shower for a quick shower and the other two boys left the door open and the toddler wandered out into the back yard. At that time Doc never was in our house and suddenly my wife found herself taking a shower with a Collie. Doc barked at her and jumped out of the shower and took off at a dead run through the house. My wife threw on a bathrobe and followed the collie who already was blocking the way to the pond with his body to prevent Aaron from getting any closer to the water.
Doc would escort our kids to the bus stop. He would stand vigil waiting and guarding until the kids were picked up and then went to the front porch and sat and waited until three o’clock. I do not know how that dog knew how to tell time but he would then stand up and wait at the end of the drive way. Ears perked, nose in the breeze and would wait for the bus to drop off our kids.
Doc presided over hundreds of basketball games in the driveway, sledding parties, slumber parties, exploration trips to the gravel pit behind our house, always vigilant always guarding our kids. Always gentle.
Doc earned the title “Gentle Doc” as he loved small children. Even as a 140lb Collie Doc knew how to be kind and gentle with little children. He was never silly, rough, or mean. Little kids loved Doc. He would let them climb all over him and ride his back. The more kids the happier Doc was. He would be wandering around the yard herding children with a big smile on his long nose. He loved people and kids especially. Even children who were deathly afraid of Dogs learned to love Doc. He was that gentle.
One of Docs favorite games was to play “ sneak into the graveyard” We live across the street from a large Cemetery and on some mornings Doc thought it fun to sneak across our gravel road and into the Cemetery. We of course would see his attempt and tap on the window and his ears would go flat and his tail would go between his legs and you could see him think “Rats foiled again” but when he did make it across into the cemetery he would wait till we saw him return from his gallivant with his tail swishing and a big grin on his face like “ha-ha…I had a blast and you didn’t catch me” Although Dogs are forbidden in the Cemetery even the Sexton of our small town loved Doc. He never complained when Doc was successful in evading our watchful eye.
Doc was also friends with the Doggy Daycare person in town. When we left on various vacations Doc was the only dog that did not need to stay in the kennel. He lived in her house and slept in her bed with her. A special treat for Doc because she also fed him Pizza now and then. Doc loved to help her herd all the other puppies during “exercise time” and when he became older presided over the shenanigans from the shade of her porch. He was loved there too.
The mailman and Doc were friends also. He always gave Doc a doggy treat and Doc waited patiently for the mail to arrive every day so he could get a pat on the head and a milk bone. The old urban rumor of Mailman and Dog did not apply to Doc. Doc loved our mailman and our mailman loved Doc.
Doc also loved our cat and our Pug. When the Pug was a little puppy often dock would lie on the ground so he could be “pug size” and would play for hours with this puppy entertaining him. He often let the cat share his kennel on cold winter nights. (In exchange for getting a taste of cat food which the Cat allowed by moving her bowl into Collie range.)
Doc was loved by everyone and Doc loved everyone back. Many guests and Co-workers of mine sat in our home or on our Deck and Doc would be there to great them and wait to be petted by them. Doc loved people.
We rarely heard Doc bark. One fond memory we had was one winter night our fat pug decided that his bowl of food was not enough and went into our mud room to eat some of Docs food…we heard a huge and ferocious barking and the pug scooted out of the mud room with his tail between his legs..”Sheesh..dont get sore about it” The pug never ate out of Docs food again. Doc one time barked at a door to door salesperson that had a bad vibe. I was gone and he approached the house when the kids were in the yard playing. He spoke to one of my kids. Bad idea, you should check with the shepherd before speaking to the sheep. He never made it to the doorbell. Doc growled and barked so savagely that the kids were amazed.
About two hours ago Doc, the Collie, faithful friend, Family member, and the best dog a family could ever be blessed with died peacefully in my and my son’s arms. I am not ashamed to say that I wept in true sorrow. In the last year Docs health had begun to decline, He had stopped eating, and had lost almost half of his body weight in over a year. He was becoming incontinent and for a dog that we honest to god never had to pick up a dog poop because he was shy about his daily toilet, this was a huge embarrassment for him.
This morning he was unable to stand and looked at me with pain in his eyes and I knew it was time for him to go. My son and I carried him to my car and put him in the back seat. As we drove away from the house he raised his head and looked at our house for one last time and whined and howled. It broke my heart, but he knew it was his time.
I am so glad that I was such a lucky man to have such a wonderful dog as a friend and a pet and as a member of my family. Some people say that Dogs do not go to heaven. I do not believe that for a minute. Doc is in heaven right now. Healthy, happy and hopefully guarding some children on a playground somewhere.
RIP my beloved pet. I loved you.
Ren
( doc dressed as a clown for a suprise 40th birthday party four years ago )
Doc was the most gentle and loving Collie one could ever wish for. He was a friend, a good shepherd and above all a fantastic dog for my children. Doc at an early age saved my youngest son from drowning. We live on a large piece of property with a pond. At the time our youngest son Aaron was a toddler. My wife stepped into the shower for a quick shower and the other two boys left the door open and the toddler wandered out into the back yard. At that time Doc never was in our house and suddenly my wife found herself taking a shower with a Collie. Doc barked at her and jumped out of the shower and took off at a dead run through the house. My wife threw on a bathrobe and followed the collie who already was blocking the way to the pond with his body to prevent Aaron from getting any closer to the water.
Doc would escort our kids to the bus stop. He would stand vigil waiting and guarding until the kids were picked up and then went to the front porch and sat and waited until three o’clock. I do not know how that dog knew how to tell time but he would then stand up and wait at the end of the drive way. Ears perked, nose in the breeze and would wait for the bus to drop off our kids.
Doc presided over hundreds of basketball games in the driveway, sledding parties, slumber parties, exploration trips to the gravel pit behind our house, always vigilant always guarding our kids. Always gentle.
Doc earned the title “Gentle Doc” as he loved small children. Even as a 140lb Collie Doc knew how to be kind and gentle with little children. He was never silly, rough, or mean. Little kids loved Doc. He would let them climb all over him and ride his back. The more kids the happier Doc was. He would be wandering around the yard herding children with a big smile on his long nose. He loved people and kids especially. Even children who were deathly afraid of Dogs learned to love Doc. He was that gentle.
One of Docs favorite games was to play “ sneak into the graveyard” We live across the street from a large Cemetery and on some mornings Doc thought it fun to sneak across our gravel road and into the Cemetery. We of course would see his attempt and tap on the window and his ears would go flat and his tail would go between his legs and you could see him think “Rats foiled again” but when he did make it across into the cemetery he would wait till we saw him return from his gallivant with his tail swishing and a big grin on his face like “ha-ha…I had a blast and you didn’t catch me” Although Dogs are forbidden in the Cemetery even the Sexton of our small town loved Doc. He never complained when Doc was successful in evading our watchful eye.
Doc was also friends with the Doggy Daycare person in town. When we left on various vacations Doc was the only dog that did not need to stay in the kennel. He lived in her house and slept in her bed with her. A special treat for Doc because she also fed him Pizza now and then. Doc loved to help her herd all the other puppies during “exercise time” and when he became older presided over the shenanigans from the shade of her porch. He was loved there too.
The mailman and Doc were friends also. He always gave Doc a doggy treat and Doc waited patiently for the mail to arrive every day so he could get a pat on the head and a milk bone. The old urban rumor of Mailman and Dog did not apply to Doc. Doc loved our mailman and our mailman loved Doc.
Doc also loved our cat and our Pug. When the Pug was a little puppy often dock would lie on the ground so he could be “pug size” and would play for hours with this puppy entertaining him. He often let the cat share his kennel on cold winter nights. (In exchange for getting a taste of cat food which the Cat allowed by moving her bowl into Collie range.)
Doc was loved by everyone and Doc loved everyone back. Many guests and Co-workers of mine sat in our home or on our Deck and Doc would be there to great them and wait to be petted by them. Doc loved people.
We rarely heard Doc bark. One fond memory we had was one winter night our fat pug decided that his bowl of food was not enough and went into our mud room to eat some of Docs food…we heard a huge and ferocious barking and the pug scooted out of the mud room with his tail between his legs..”Sheesh..dont get sore about it” The pug never ate out of Docs food again. Doc one time barked at a door to door salesperson that had a bad vibe. I was gone and he approached the house when the kids were in the yard playing. He spoke to one of my kids. Bad idea, you should check with the shepherd before speaking to the sheep. He never made it to the doorbell. Doc growled and barked so savagely that the kids were amazed.
About two hours ago Doc, the Collie, faithful friend, Family member, and the best dog a family could ever be blessed with died peacefully in my and my son’s arms. I am not ashamed to say that I wept in true sorrow. In the last year Docs health had begun to decline, He had stopped eating, and had lost almost half of his body weight in over a year. He was becoming incontinent and for a dog that we honest to god never had to pick up a dog poop because he was shy about his daily toilet, this was a huge embarrassment for him.
This morning he was unable to stand and looked at me with pain in his eyes and I knew it was time for him to go. My son and I carried him to my car and put him in the back seat. As we drove away from the house he raised his head and looked at our house for one last time and whined and howled. It broke my heart, but he knew it was his time.
I am so glad that I was such a lucky man to have such a wonderful dog as a friend and a pet and as a member of my family. Some people say that Dogs do not go to heaven. I do not believe that for a minute. Doc is in heaven right now. Healthy, happy and hopefully guarding some children on a playground somewhere.
RIP my beloved pet. I loved you.
Ren
( doc dressed as a clown for a suprise 40th birthday party four years ago )
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...I could read this every day for years and I'd well up in tears every time I read it...My heart goes out to you and your family Ren...