Geniewoodworking - Our Dogs

Mr. Spot

Born November, 1995

It has been said that Mr. Spot had better outlive me (Elaine), because I will not survive his loss. Spot came into our lives one day in May, 1996 when we had our back yard gate open in order to lay some new sod. We found out later that he had been living with some students who were renting a house up the street from us. At the end of the semester, the students removed his collar and moved away, leaving him to fend for himself. Spot was infested with fleas and ticks, so we cleaned him up, got him neutered and we tried to find him a home. He proved to be an independent sort though, because Spot showed everyone that he can jump a 6 foot fence with no trouble at all. He escaped his new home and was brought to the shelter by the dog catcher. When I heard about his escape, my friend Kim and I left work and searched for him everywhere. When we found him at the shelter, I paid his ransom, brought him home and swore that we would never part again.

Spot is now 12 years old and he no longer jumps the fence. He can still jump into my lap when I am in my recliner as long as the foot rest is not too high. He likes me to scratch his back while we watch TV.

Spot has developed Cushing's disease and is on medication for the rest of his life. He has good days and some not so good. I appreciate every day that I have left with him.

Shadow Dancer

Born August 1997

Greg and I were out for a neighborhood walk one evening in May, 1998, when all of a sudden out of the bushes came this adorable pup who appeared to have misplaced her tail. She fell in place between us and walked with us all the way home where she helped herself to a BIG drink of water. She wore no collar, but she appeared to be well cared for - no parasites, fleas or ticks. We made signs and posted them in the neighborhood, and we brought one of our signs to the animal shelter in case her owner ended up looking for her there. After about a day of enjoying her quirkiness, we silently hoped that the phone would never ring. It didn't, so we got to keep her. She loves everyone, but she is most partial to men. She is most definitely Greg's Shadow.

Maxx-a-Million

Born August 26, 2001

Elaine was visiting the vet with Shiner in November, 2001 when she saw a family with a baby golden lab pup as they exited the exam room. The mother appeared to care for the dog, but the father was vocal about his distaste for him. They posted an adoption request on the vet's bulletin board because they could not care for him any longer. I made the "mistake" of telling Greg about the man who was not kind to the cutest puppy in the world. They had named him "Cupcake" - imagine!

Greg called the vet and got the adoption information from the bulletin board and presented Maxx to me for my birthday.

Maxx has never forgotten the cruelty he suffered at the hands of that very bad man. He continues to dislike large men when he first meets them, but after a few minutes, he warms up to them.

Maxx came into our lives as our dear Shiner was leaving us. We used to think that we rescued Maxx, but the truth is that he rescued us. He seems to have a lot of Shiner's traits in addition to a few unique ones of his own.

Rocket Ramjet

Born circa May, 2002

Rocket got his name from his tendency to run around the room, pick up a toy and zoom around in circles, then pick up a different toy and zoom some more.

Elaine was at work one Friday when an e-mail went around about a puppy who needed a home. He and his mother were living with a homeless man and his coat was crusted with tar. She deleted the message without opening it, because there was no room at the "inn". A co-worker told her that she was wise to have done that because the puppy looked so adorable. Well, naturally, she had to look at it at that point. She sent the picture to Greg and tried unsuccessfully to forget about him.

When she called to inquire about the puppy, the woman couldn't come to the phone because she was talking to Greg on the other line.

In the summer of 2003, Rocket passed his Canine Good Citizen Exam!

Isabel

Born November 5, 2002

The Next Generation - Our First Grandpup!

Isabel was born on Election Day - about an hour after the polls closed.

Nikki and Whitey, Isabel's proud parents, live with the Wrights who are friends of the family. How fortunate that the litter would be ready to leave the nest just before Christmas!

Greg thought it was a good idea to give Isabel to Meghan for Christmas. Isabel trembled as we drove her away from her litter, but she soon blended in with her new adopted family.

She is currently living with Meg in Austin, Texas. She comes to visit her "aunts", "uncles", and "grand-parents" often and she enjoys her time "at camp" swimming in the pool and chasing the other dogs.

Isabel gives special thanks to Tyler Wright for the excellent care he gave her at the beginning of her life, and for sharing his bedroom with her and her littermates.

Bridget Bardot

Born October, 2003

Woops! We did it again!

Greg went to Petsmart to buy some dog food and fell in love with a speckled face that reminded him of Shiner, so naturally, she came home with him. We soon discovered that she does not resemble Shiner in any other way.

Bridget is playful and loves shoes - especially their taste. She ate my favorite Anne Klein shoes, among others. She tears through the house and jumps over coffee tables and even sofas. But when it comes time to jump into the car to visit the vet, she pretends that she forgot how to jump and we have to give her a boost.

She attended the Canine Good Citizen class, but she could never master the "STAY" command. She is our rebel.

Molly
Sadie
Taz
Lacey
Shiner
Smokey

Molly McBurr

Born January, 1990

Died March 29, 2005

Our first family dog. She taught us a lot about being responsible dog people, and she paved the way for several more dogs to come. Molly and our (human) daughter Meghan hit it off from the beginning. When Meghan would spend the summers with her dad, Molly stood guard at her bedroom door until she returned. In February, 2000, Molly went to live with Meghan in her first college apartment, and they were roommates until the end.

Molly was known as the "fun police" at our home. When she had enough of listening to the other dogs playing with squeaky toys, she would break up the fun, pick up the noisy toy and hide it in another room of the house.

In March, 2005, Molly started to have seizures. At first, they were infrequent, and she appeared to recover quickly. Later, the seizures were more frequent and more debilitating. Doctors suspected a brain tumor. Meghan was at her side when Molly took her last breath. We were all very sad to say goodbye to our Molly-girl.

Sadie Rose

Born July, 1990

Died November 6, 1995

Molly needed a friend to help her expend her energy in positive ways. She had eaten through the siding of the house, devoured several lawn chairs, a purse, and the last twenty pages of a 700 page novel that Elaine had read through page 600.

We met Sadie at the animal shelter and she was cute as a button. She developed a high fever during her first few weeks and we almost lost her. We seem to think that the fever was the cause of some of Sadie's interesting quirks. She had a hard time getting to like new people, but she definitely didn't like anyone who wore a hat. She loved to ride in the car and she knew she was going for a ride whenever she heard us sing "Born to be Wild".

In the fall of 1995, she developed a nose bleed and she sneezed nearly constantly. Eventually, she was diagnosed with a nasal tumor, and we lost her soon after that. We learned of Gulf Coast Vet Specialists too late to help poor Sadie.

Tazzer McTavish

Born September, 1990

Died December 22, 2005

Tazzer's goal in life was to get everyone in the world to love her and pet her. Taz came into our lives because we went to the animal shelter one day to donate some dog food. We took a stroll through the cages to pet some dogs, and we saw this adorable white snowflake, curled up in the corner of a cage.

She had an incision on her belly indicating that she had been spayed. When we asked about her, we were told that the family who had wanted to adopt her changed its mind and adopted a male instead. It broke our hearts to see this adorable pup all prepped up and waiting to go home. So she did - - with us.

At age 15, Taz was a content little lady. She never was very needy. She was almost completely deaf and she was beginning to lose her sight. Her quality of life was deteriorating quickly and while she tried to make it to Christmas, we lost her three days shy. While we knew it was the right thing to do for her, it did not make it any easier.

Lacey Mae

Born October, 1991

Died March 20, 2004

Lacey Mae was Elaine's surprise birthday present in November, 1991. We were on a roll adding to our family of furry friends. Shortly after Lacey came to live with us, the animal shelter called to tell us that some of her littermates were dying of parvo and that we could return her for a different puppy. We could not do that, but rather together with our vet, we watched her closely for the next few weeks, and she survived the crisis. Lacey, at 28 pounds was the smallest of our pack, but she was scrappy and she loved to cuddle and watch NASCAR races with Greg.

Lacey was diagnosed with bladder cancer in January, 2002. She underwent chemotherapy and radiation at Gulf Coast Veterinary Oncologists and sadly, she lost her battle in March 2004. Her quality of life was excellent until just before her death, and we miss our little girl.

Shiner Bear

Born February, 1993

Died February 23, 2002

The Bear - our largest dog weighing in at a slender 90 pounds. We were shopping for dog food one day at our local pet store, and we saw two women with a shopping cart outside the store with a sign that read "Free Puppies." Inside the cart were several beautiful Blue Heeler/White German Shepherd pups. We could not resist that face.

Shiner grew very quickly and at 6 months of age, we discovered that she was afflicted with severe bi-lateral hip dysplasia. It turned out that Shiner was a genetic disaster. She underwent two total hip replacement surgeries, surgery to repair her shoulder and later, her knee, and she was on medication for all of her life for a malformed urinary tract.

In November, 2001, we learned that Shiner developed a malignant bone tumor - presumably a reaction to one of her hip implants. She might have lived a little longer if her leg had been amputated, but we decided that she had been through enough.

We knew it was time to say goodbye when she couldn't wag her massive tail anymore. She lost her battle with cancer on February 23, 2002. While we were grateful that she made it to her 9th birthday, it was nearly unbearable to let her go. She will always hold a special place in our hearts.

Smokey Bandit

Born July, 1994

Died March 29, 2007

Smokey was given to us by friends who knew she would have a good home. To say that her personality was unique is an understatement. For example, the sound of a thunderstorm did not frighten Smokey, but the sight of a helium latex balloon did. When all of the other dogs ran around, swam and played fetch with us in the back yard, Smokey stood guard at our side or at the back door to our house. Smokey had no bad habits, and she was the most loyal and affectionate dog in our pack.

Smokey's puppy photo was featured in the 1999 365 Puppies of the year calendar - She was Miss April 12.

Smokey was diagnosed with bi-lateral hip dysplasia in the fall of 1999. She had her left hip replaced in January, 2000 and her right hip replaced in December, 2003.

During the last 18 months of her life, Smokey developed some hot spots on her hips that never healed. During the last two weeks, she struggled more and more to get up from a nap and it was obvious that her quality of life had deteriorated significantly.

We sat on the floor with her for an hour, loving on her and telling her how rich she had made our lives. We took her for her last ride, and she passed away peacefully in our arms in Dr. Matthews' office.