Samson
Posted: Sun Nov 20, 2011 10:33 pm
I don't post often on the site but stop in all the time to read and learn from others. For the last year or so I've tried to stay out of this section because I didn't want to think about the day that I would have something to post here. Sammy was my first bird dog. I was 20 and still living with my parents. I went home one day to tell my parents that I was looking at a litter of shorthairs from a local breeder. My parents told me that I could have a dog when I got my own house. I started looking that day. Signed papers about a week later, but the litter was still ready before the house was. I tried to sneak my new pup into my parents basement until I could move in. That lasted for a few hours who would have known that such a little pup could whine so loud. Sammy was the runt of the litter and was born to a mother that must have been all of 35 lbs. The breeder told me that he bred smaller shorthairs for foot hunters which was just what I was looking for. He turned out to be 65 lbs of muscle that you couldn't slow down. We walked about 5 miles most days and he always wanted more, but he was great around the house and great with my kids. About four years ago he stared to slow down and we wondered how much longer he could have left. It was decided we would look for another dog. Well we ended up with a pair of brittanys I figured 2 would equil one of him in size anyway. From the minute I brought the new pups home he was a new dog and took care of them like they were his. He even picked them up and carried them around with his mouth when they would get in trouble. Well its now almost 4 years later and I knew the day was comming but it doesn't make it any easier. I was about 75 miles away at deer camp Thursday when I got the call. He had gone outside and come back in then fell down on the kitchen floor and wasn't getting up. I could tell from my girlfriends tears that it wasn't good. She carried him to the couch and sat with him while I drove home. When I got there he didn't look any better. I sat with him for a while. I did get him to pick up his head and take one last treat. It was one of the hardest things that I have ever had to do. I had to pick up and carry the dog that used to drag me for 5 miles every day. After alot more tears at the vet I took Sammy for one last trip to hunting camp. He now rests under a balsam tree on the edge of a field in a spot that we found many a grouse. It's been a very long weekend and it hit the kids very hard. It's hard to believe that sitting around talking about memories could take so much out of you. Sammy spent 15 1/2 years in my home but will forever be in my heart.
RIP SAMSON...ruth