"Kit Love"

Today we said goodbye to Kit, our family dog that has been with us for the last 12 years. I was grateful that she stayed right at home to die, and not go off into the wild, like most dogs will. She has been battling a tumor for the last few months, and while some of you may think it's cruel - we don't take our dogs, or any other animals to the vet. We just don't have the money for it, and we feel that however long our dog can be with us, then we are blessed for that amount of time. So we said our goodbyes last night and this morning. Yes, she made it through the night, which surprised me. But knowing Kit, she was not going to leave us without letting us know that she was okay with it too. So this morning, at 5:30, Tibi went out to say her last goodbyes...she died seven minutes later.
Last night as I was taking trash out, I noticed Kit was walking very gingerly and like she was in a lot of pain. She has been deaf for the last few months, so I stroked her ear while talking to her to let her know that I was concerned. I immediately noticed blood on the back of her, on her tail and down her leg, and instantly knew that it must be the tumor finally taking over. Kevin and I got her to lay down on the porch, covered her with a blanket, and although hoping for the best, knew that she would not make it much longer. Even our cat sensed something was very wrong, and tried her best to console Kit...which I though was very sweet.

We have had many dogs at different times, but none like Kit. She was loyal and thrived on affection from us, even if it was just acknowledging that we noticed her. She would come up to you if you were sitting on the porch, and dig her nose under your arm, so that you would rub her head, or pet her - something that usually annoyed me, but that I will miss.

We actually were lucky to have Kit as long as we did. She delivered three litters of puppies for a total of 24 puppies a few years ago - which I'm sure makes her a granddog by now. No matter how old, or tired, or how much her bones hurt, she ALWAYS managed to have enough "puppy" energy to go on our walks, or a run with dad. It's like she transformed into a puppy all over again. It was the craziest thing...

Everybody loved Kit, even people that didn't "know" her. She would bark at everyone that came around (I think it was that protective "mother" in her that she never got over, even though we never kept any of the puppies she had), she would let us know that someone was around, but NEVER ever did I see her nip at anyone. As soon as you touched her, or called her name, she was your lover for life, even if you were a stranger.

I always thought I knew which kid loved Kit the most...but now I'm not sure I do. They were all so sad when I told them that she had died. Maybe it has to do with them not being here, to at least say goodbye. I do know that they are not too excited about us getting another dog anytime soon - which is fine with me. I'm not sure I ever want to go through this again.

So goodbye Kit. I will miss your barking in the middle of the night to let us know that you are keeping an eye on things. I will miss seeing you play with the grandkids, and having grandma say hello to you when they come to visit. Most of all, I will miss my "walking buddy" - walking out the door with my ipod and stretching will be pretty lonely without you jumping all over the place, knowing that we would be off on another adventure into the wild! Thank you for loving us and being part of our family...