To Our Maggie

by Bonnie
(Woodstock GA USA)

People say to me; “You have how many dogs? Nine dogs??”

My response; “Yes we have nine beautiful schnauzers. Three Miniature Schnauzers and 6 Standard Schnauzers. “They are loved by me with all my heart."

One of our Miniature Schnauzers, Maggie, is 17-3/4 years old. She will be 18 years old in June 2014. But she really has started to just go downhill. There are days she walks with the other dogs, there are days she kind of gets lost and just stands there. Most days I have to clean up after her accidents, she can’t hold it any longer. She can’t see or hear very well.

But I remember better days like when we first brought her home and she was so little and cute. She fit in my jacket when it was cold outside. I would hold her close to my body to keep warm. I remember she would sleep between my husband Bob and me and had her own little pillow. We called her snorty because she was a snorter and snorted. She was a love and we took her everywhere with us. Everyone loved her she was so sweet and gentle.

Then as time marched on and we all were getting older we noticed she could not see well or hear well, then the incontinence started and we tried medicine and diapers and that did not work so she no longer spent the days and nights with us instead she slept downstairs with our Standard Male DaVinci. She had problems now walking up and down the stairs also.

I was getting so frustrated with all the accidents and her forgetfulness. Even though I knew it was not her fault. Everyone said; “do you think it is time to you know what?’ I could not bring myself to think about it much less to have her euthanized. I was hoping she would go to sleep and die peacefully in her sleep. I have taken such good care of our dogs and it shows in the fact that her heart and body seem strong even with all the other problems she is having. But when she was having trouble this past weekend and her back legs were not always holding her up and she would lie in her bed and look at me and not want to get out of the bed to walk and was waiting for me to carry her out, I just knew this could not go on.

I have heard people say you just know somehow that this is the time and I did, I think because she told me. I listen to our dogs, I know what they are thinking and saying, I physically and mentally “feel” their spirit in me. I looked at Maggie as she was lying in her bed and she looked at me and I know she said, “I am tired, please let me go.” I cried and thought about all the wonderful years we had together and how much I will miss her and how much I love her.

Today is the last day of we'll see her little face. I am so sad. We will have her cremated and will let her ashes blow in the wind while we are driving the way she would have liked to have her face hanging out of the window with the wind blowing on it.

Bonnie

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