Huckaberry, our dog
Posted by Pete | Posted in News | Posted on 10-04-2010
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When number one grandson was very young he got a puppy, a Dalmatian, he raised her and from time to time we would see the grandson and the dog. Huck, as she was called, was always too active and big for our taste, so we were not exactly fond of the dog, but it was our grandson pet, so we tolerated her. Years later my daughter had inherited Huck from no. 1 grandson who was now off on his own and was not able to take care of Huck. My daughter moved to Albuquerque, with Huck but a couple of years later decided to go to nursing school and asked if we would take care of Huck….Huck was now getting old, had bad hips from being run over when she was young, so she had slowed down and was not as active and demanding as before…Well, we kept her…I worked so Huck and Darling became a special pair. It did not start right off that way but a very slow and loving attachment. We would be going to town shopping, so Darling would say softly and sweetly, “Huck, we are going shopping and I will bring you back something, so you go on into the back yard and wait on us.” Huck’s big brown eyes would look so loving and trusting at Darling and take off running for the back yard. And when we got back Huck would immediately run up to Darling looking at her with the “what did you bring me” look in her eyes. Of course, Darling would have her something always. On the other hand, if it was me, and I told her I was going to town and for her to go into the back yard, she would just stand and look at me like, “what are you talking about”. I never got that trick to work. Anyway, we went from reluctant dog owner to the both of us getting so attached to Huck, loved her so much maybe even more than she did us. But, the old damaged hips and old age got the best of her and the vet told Darling we needed to put her down. Darling told me one Saturday morning at breakfast what the Vet said and then she said, “you will need to take Huck down to the Vet to have him put her down.” I had to stop eating, “I can’t do that, I just can’t do it.” Well, we called my son in law and daughter in Tucson and they came out and did it. I regret making them travel so far to handle that job and it was very difficult for them as they loved Huck also, but they did. It has been hard for Darling and me to talk about Huck and we have not looked at her pictures….There is a void in our lives since Huck left….How can you get so attached to a dog? I guess it becomes family….Here is her picture….Isn’t she beautiful…We will probably never own another, but this one was oh so special and we still miss her….
Thank you so much dad. I really needed to see that one today. This one is truly special. What a difference it made in my life. Thank you again. Phyllis
For our readers knowledge, Phyllis was the first Momma of Huck. Huck loved her very much also. Anyway, we all thought she was very special. I’m glad she made a difference in your life as well as ours. Love you, Dad
What a lovely story. My father and your cousin (Don Bishop) sent me a link to read the story. We too had a Dalmatian (Black-eyed Susan)that we all loved. Our “Susan” was one of a liter of puppies of some of our closest friends and my older children were allowed to pick out the one they wanted. They chose the only puppy to be born with a Black spot (on her eye).
Susan was hyper which seemed to fit into our family of 4 hyperactive children and sometimes, we were not very happy with her behaviors, but she was loved. As our children (and Susan) grew up, there was a transfer of responsibilities as well as time spent with Susan down the line of kids. Our youngest daughter, Nicole, shared many special times sitting and hugging Susan while she shared the secrets of her heart as well as time chasing and running around the yard with Susan.
A few years ago, Susan’s health started to deteriorate rapidly and after a week in the Vet hospital (on IV meds), she came home to see if we could “just make it through Christmas”. That wasn’t to be. On Dec 23rd, we took Susan to the Vet’s for the last time. Our family was there (except for the son that had picked her out to begin with and who could not face that moment). We all hugged Susan and the Vet asked if we were leaving or staying and while our other two children left, Nicole (who was 11 at the time) responded, “I’m going to hold her and look into her eyes so that she will know that I love her”. What a moment.
Susan brought to our family much joy, just as Huck brought to yours. I’m sure that when I tell Nicole about Huck, she will immediately say, Mom, they are probably together running and playing and watching us.
Thanks for the story.
Debbie
Debbie, wow, what a story…I thought of Huck as I read it and it brought tears to my eyes…Thank you so much for sharing your story and I think many people will read this and also be touched. Thanks again, Debbie, and do come back to see us. Pete Hester
Wow! The puppy stories! It will soon be “101 Dalmatians” all over again: the second better than the first (Hollywood). I still like my “I like Ike” story. My Ike was only a bird dog: a long legged, short-haired pointer. He was never registered, but he did have pedegree. He could have been registered. I was too young to know much about the President and the General of the Armies, but I grew up with my Ike. Ike was born the same month that President Eisenhower was elected President of the United States (November, 1952). I was 11 years old. He died by suffocation when I was in college in 1962 when my brother allowed the dog to enter an enclosed car without telling anyone and went off to school. The dog was already stiff when my mother found him in the car about noon that day.
One of the memories I like most about Ike was the day he jumped in front of Dad’s hay mower cutting off both rear legs. Dad ran to the house to get his shotgun to put the poor dog out of his misery; but, when he got back to the dog, the dog appeared to be doing so well that he couldn’t bear to shoot him; instead, he gathered Ike up in a blanket, placed him in the backseat of the car (the same car that would be his deathtrap a few years later), and drove about 20 miles to the Vet office in Aliceville. The Vet sewed both legs back together and spliced the bones. After a few weeks he was as good as new. Dad always said that he was a better bird dog after that because the accident slowed him down to where he did not run up as many coveys.
Ike was an outdoor dog. He loved to run over lots of terrain. Like the President, as General of the Armies, he commanded that vast terrain as he ran over it. All quail and all other dogs in the vicinity knew the moment he entered the field of battle. Dwight David Eisenhower was the only General to hold the five-star rank and the title “General of the Armies” that was established by the Congress of the United States, but I would have given it to my Ike as well. He was no general, and he was no president, but he commanded the “birds of the field”.
Yes, I rememeber Ike also…I just did not remember his name.
Thanks for writing….Pete