We adopted a dog through Echo in 2003, he was listed as Gunner. I thought the name was cool and different, but he was definitely a Buddy, so the family named him Buddy. A common name among dogs, but this was no common dog. Buddy became my favorite Geocaching partner and we visited many places all across Kansas. He was very obedient and always friendly. I seldom had to put him on a leash. He loved to chase rabbits and deer, anything that would run really. He had no bad intent, he just loved the chase. He killed a squirrel once, then looked at me like I could fix it. We found a fawn in a stubble field and Bud tried to get it to play. That would describe him best, life was one big game for him. If he could understand the game, he was in for the duration. I have polluted several web sites with hundreds of photos of Bud in all sorts of vehicles and historic places. It is not hard to find a good photo of him. He was a tall and powerful young man and could really run when he called upon those long legs. By shepherd standards, he was way too tall in the rump, but it suited him well and he never had hip, knee or back problems. He loved people, especially young people and would lay with them for hours. He would take all the poking fingers and appropriate pats and grabs with no signs of stress or being upset. As friendly as he was, he was also instantly protective. If he thought somebody was threatening a family member, he was right there, right now. He grabbed a guys arm for shaking hands with me, he did not break the skin, but he let the guy know Dad was hands off. That is just how he was. One evening in the end of November 2013, maybe the first day or two of December, Bud collapsed on the floor briefly and then stood up confused. He seemed to be himself within a couple of minutes. Two days later, I noticed that his belly seemed full. We took him to the vet and learned he had suffered heart damage. We bought medication, but he was not strong enough to overcome the fluid buildup and died December 6th. It was a tremendous crash of emotion for me. The purpose of writing is to share the great memories and a few photos of our Bud Boy. I want to thank Echo for making Buds adoption available to us. He was a tremendous friend, a valued family member and loved by all who knew him. It is hard to believe anybody could take that beautiful animal to a shelter and leave it to die. Bud was still very sick when we adopted him, his body weight was 64 pounds and he had a pretty serious respiratory infection. Echo spent much more than my adoption fees on him and we spent another 400 dollars getting him cleared up. From the time he beat that infection until his heart gave out, he had no medical issues at all. He lived a healthy and happy life. He was also very active and found a few strands of barbed wire that required sutures on more than one occasion, he was just that kind of guy. There were not many hills he did not climb to the top and there were not many bodies of water he did not get at least chest deep in. I am sure that by now the angels have found his entertaining personality and have rubbed most of the hair off of his chest. He is sorely missed and much loved. Rest in peace my friend.
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 23:22:03 +0000
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