Darswords

I was just researching my first blog about Kali. Maybe the archives don’t go back to December 9th, 2016. That’s the day Laura, my daughter brought Kali to me. The first blog I can find is This One. There is a picture of me from when Kali was still my grandpuppy and lived with Laura.

Now, this picture will make me cry forever. Kali is so sweet and full of energy. It is hard to remember her from back then. But if you do a search on the name Kali on my blog, you will see she even had her own blog for a while.

Please forgive me as I journey down memory lane.

As I said, Kali was Laura’s dog. They were inseparable. Laura took her everywhere. They shared a home with Logan, her brother, and Vader, Logan’s huge dog. Sometimes my brother and I would pet sit if the offspring had to go to a place where dogs weren’t allowed. Kali would sleep with me. Vader would sleep with my brother.

I felt we connected during those short visits.

Soon Laura decided it was time to get her own apartment. Kali didn’t like being alone while Laura went to work. Separation anxiety caused Kali to rip up Laura’s apartment.

Our house had four adults home all the time. We all thought we might be able to help her. And so it was decided Laura brought Kali to me on my birthday in December 2016. Doesn’t that seem a long time ago?

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Please excuse me while I curse internally for a moment. I had a LONG blog ready to publish and only the top bit was saved. I am going to attempt to rewrite the WHOLE thing, even though it was full of painful memories. But I best get on with it.

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Kali, a rat-terrier, had a lot of energy. We rarely had a quiet day at first. And that was good for me. Even though it was a very cold winter, I had to take her outside. I got a good tam that first year. We did a lot of playing in the yard or taking walks. She loved rides in the truck.

If you wanted to see a dog dancing pirouettes pull out the leash. It was hard to hold still but she wanted to go badly enough that she’d hold still to let you put on the harness or the coat if needed.

But she had social anxiety and couldn’t tell who was good or bad. She might attack the sweetest dogs and made some walks very scary for me.

After three donut turns at night, Kali would curl up in her ‘donut dog’ shape and sleep with me. It made me laugh every night.

Before Kali came it was only Teddy and Rosey. Teddy divorced me the minute Kali moved in. I tried to explain to him that I still loved him but he wouldn’t sleep with me or sit on my lap for the longest time. Only recently did he come back to me sleeping in the bed and spending lap time. I’m glad he forgave me before he left us for that rainbow bridge a few weeks ago.

Though we only had her for seven years it seem like we were together forever. Kali was a part of my daily life. Even with her quirks, she was my best friend.

In the last few months Kali was diagnosed with doggy’s Alzheimer’s, arthritis, cataracts. Her inability to see and her confusion would have her lost in a corner here or there. She was in a lot of pain and we finally had to give up outside jonts as she could get hurt falling up or down the steps or get lost in bushes. We lined our house with piddle pads and eased her shame that it was all she could do. I gradually had to have her sleep on a little bed at the foot of my bed. I felt badly that she couldn’t sleep with me but she fell off the bed so many times and I was always scared she might hurt herself. This whole process was so painful for all of us. From the high energy of her youth to seemingly older than us in the end. Taking care of an elder dog is heartbreaking.

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I know there was more here but I forgot what I wrote drat it!

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So the last couple weeks she just got more and more tired, just laying at first on the sofa but soon even that was too dangerous so we would scoope her up and put her on either the bed in our room or the bed in the living room where she was right on the floor.

The last few days she gave up food and water. We could no longer give her the pain meds as they needed food or she’d get sick. This was so hard. Look up what to expect from a dying dog. She was all that list. The only good was she preferred lap time with me and I would spend that time talking to her and petting her ears. She loved that.

We live so far from a vet that the trip to have her euthanized seemed crueler than just easing her with love. Yes there was pain but that trip is very painful.

We four adults took shifts in the last days so that she was never alone. We did all we could to keep her comfortable and knowing she was loved.

At 5:11 this morning my husband woke me (I’d just gone to bed at 3:30) and told me that Kali went peacefully.

I woke to an already cleaner house as my brother had picked up and thrown away all the piddle pads and all the bedding and towel were in the washer. He even had a small funeral with the little cat outside as witness. We were all wet faced for several days. Kali is missed. How many dogs love loom knitting?

Here’s a little poem my husband, Chris created with the IA program.

A loyal friend who loved to play, 

A furry companion who brightened each day, 

A faithful pet who stole our hearts, 

Our beloved dog who now departs. 

With wagging tail and happy bark, 

You greeted us each time we embarked, 

On walks and runs and games of fetch, 

Your presence made us feel so blessed. 

You snuggled close on cold, dark nights, 

Your warmth and love were shining lights, 

You listened closely to our tales, 

And licked our tears when we felt frail. 

But now you’re gone and we’re alone, 

Our hearts are heavy, our souls are moan, 

We’ll miss your smile, your silly ways, 

And cherish memories of better days. 

Rest in peace, dear furry friend, 

Your love and loyalty will never end, 

Though you’re no longer by our side, 

In our hearts, you’ll always reside. 

Made by Chris https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt