In October of 1996 I adopted a dog from the rescue shelter I was working at temporarily. The administrator bent the 3 month working before you could adopt rule for me because I was a temp employee. I'm so glad she did. for the past 10 and a half years I have shared my life and my space with a sweet Border Collie, named Lady. She has spent more time with me than my husband who is on the road. I was never alone, I always had Lady. She went with me on road trips, out to the barn, for walks around town.
For the last 3 years she has been slowing down, only showing short bursts of energy here and there, but fully enjoying our move to a 16 acre farm in January '06. For the last 3 weeks she has been unable to walk on the hard floor without help and I have been carrying her in and out the back steps, we where wrestling with that decision. I never thought taking a pet to a place they where afraid as your last act of kindness seemed to quite be the right way to let them go. I was hoping to avoid that trip. Lady made that choice on Saturday. I think she really let go on Friday night, after my husband came home. I always figured she would wait for him to come home on a weekend, and she did. No last visit to the scary vet. Just a peaceful passing.
She is buried not far from where this picture was taken, in the place I like to call our orchard.
