[ RadSafe ] Once upon a time .... Maury&Dog

[Maury Siskel]

Once upon a time in a land far away (actually in Ft. Worth Tx about 14 
years ago) an old man agreed to keep temporarily a mixed collie black 
lab frisky pup for a friend. The pup was intended to become a gift, but 
the recipient no longer wanted a dog. The old man agreed to keep the dog 
a while longer and began considering the dog to become a permanent resident.

When I began working with Jake, he would only approach when called and 
dance around out of reach. He simply refused to 'come' when called and 
was on the verge of being returned to his owner. But continued work on a 
long leash finally led to greater mutual trust and Jake would come 
bounding across the yard or walk calmly across the living room when called.

Jake was very frightened at first. He would only enter another room in 
the house when I stayed by his side. He had to be walked through every 
door -- too frightened to explore any place alone. But he discovered 
soon that I was a reliable source of affection, food and water. A 
relationship blossomed as I discovered a great 95 lbs. of everlasting 
energy, full of affection who greeted me with a huge wagging tail and a 
big smile every time I arrived home. Whenever called, Jake came bounding 
to the back door.

He cultivated a perpetual game of tag with his pet rabbits and squirrels 
in a large back yard. He soon discovered that he did not have their 
maneuverability, but he and they seemed to enjoy the chase game even as 
they all knew that no one would be hurt (or eaten). He was entirely at 
home in the yard as well as in the house -- he was freely allowed either 
location at his request. He often slept outside even in below freezing 
temperatures, but was equally content indoors.

In the course of time, the old man agreed to compete for a city council 
seat. In a local newspaper, someone depicted me and my 'killer dog' with 
the cartoon of a miniature dog standing up on the inside of a large food 
dish with the lettering, Killer Dog. Thus was Maury&Dog born. We didn't 
win the election. but we had a solid place in each other's hearts; a 
great dog with the Biggest Tongue in the West who never gave the first 
thought to growling at or biting anyone. He was a careful friend to 
toddlers and vigorously affectionate with adults.

Maury&Dog remained a committed pair then through many years of mutual 
love and companionship. We grew increasingly creaky with the passing 
years. It has always been great to have and to give our company to each 
other. We developed a vocabulary which had consistent meanings. He 
waited patiently when I was away for over a month following heart bypass 
surgery. He remained always enjoying excellent health and we cared 
greatly for each other.

Dogs the size of Jake have an average life expectancy of about nine 
years. But it became progressively more difficult for him to cope with 
arthritic joints -- he still walked the backyard with head and tail high 
and always came in when called -- only a bit more slowly than earlier 
years. Then he began to wince a bit in certain positions.

On December 30th with his head in my lap on the floor in the vets' 
office, Jake, after more than fifteen years of great living, was 
painlessly and peacefully put down. I miss him terribly.

Best,
Maury&Dog