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Photo taken June of 2009
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Scout- what can I say about our first Boxer? He was ALL Boxer in his
mannerisms, even if he wasn't perfect conformationally. He was the most
brilliant dog I ever came across. He knew his toys by description and would
spend what seemed to be hours looking for a specific toy that he was tasked
to find (he was immensely needy as a youngster- always wanting more
attention then any human could possibly give), so he was given jobs of
finding toys that we would hide around the house. He would search, and then
come back to me - pleading me to help him find his "misplaced" toy. I would
direct him to the bedroom or some such location, and off he would trot,
determined to find that toy. He always would find it. I thought he was
beautiful as a puppy - don't we always!? He had a beautiful black mask, dark
eyes, and beautiful red coat to his credit. Even as we said goodbye, there
was barely a hint of gray in his muzzle. Scout was too smart for
conformation, and he was really too smart for obedience. He learned quickly
that all he needed was 3 qualifying scores in obedience to get his Companion
Dog title - so, Scout refused to "play" my game. He went on to garner 2 AKC
legs, with a High in Trial Boxer, and 2 CKC legs - he wouldn't, or couldn't
- in his eyes, allow me a moment of peace or happiness and get the final
legs - for either registry. He taught me so much - in and out of the ring.
He showed me that there are certainly more then one way to teach a dog how
to do something- and he always made me laugh.
The laughter stopped when Scout began showing signs of Degenerative
Myelopathy (DM) in2009. For many months we tried to ignore the signs - and
when it got too much, we chose to say goodbye to our friend, shortly after
his 10th birthday. We took him to the University of Missouri at Columbia and
had Dr Joan Coates do the honors of saying goodbye and then taking the
important spine and brain of our boy into the research program that the
school is doing. Hopefully, with Scout's help, they can find a cure to DM or
perhaps a treatment plan. The donation to the school is also benefiting man
as well. Lou Gehrig's (ALS) is very similar to DM - so the samples and
research will be shared to better mankind and the canine world.
It was a hard decision - but the best one I have ever made.
Rest easy Scoutie Dog- run free, run proud - and we will find you on the
other side. |
