Dedicated to my boys

I love to read the dedication pages in books.  I often think who I would dedicate my book to, if I would ever write one, and I never think of the same people every time.  Before I even titled this blog, I knew who I would dedicate it to.  This blog is dedicated to my boys, my first babies, my Murray and Dudley.

I've always been an animal lover.  I grew up with dogs, cats, birds and fish.  I think all of my relatives also had a pet or two.  My grandparents had dogs and their love was inspiring.  

We bought our first house in 2000 and I knew immediately that we would have dogs.  I was young and I was naive.   My husband and I decided to go through a breeder because we didn't want to "deal with all of the problems those shelter dogs had" and we didn't want to "deal with not knowing where those dogs came from".  

I easily found a breeder in our area.  She had two sisters she bred with one "stud".  Both girls got pregnant and Murray and Dudley were born within 9 days of each other.  They were half brothers and cousins.  I called them my "Jerry Springer dogs".  But hey, they were from a "responsible" breeder and AKC certified so they were going to be healthy, perfect dogs.  Little did I know...

Murray and Dudley were great dogs.  They were loving and so much fun.  They each had their own personality and I was so happy with my babies.

When they were 7 years old, Murray got sick.  

After several difficult months, the vets figured out he had diabetes and "severe liver disease".  They had never seen a dog with such advanced liver disease at his age and it was through no fault of my own.  He had "bad genes".  The specialist gave him 6 months to live, at most.  I was devastated.  The average lifespan of a Maltese was 12-15 years.  It was too soon.  Murray was my Sunshine and my heart and I wasn't ready to let him leave me.  Long story short, my boy rallied and lived for 2 more happy years.  Letting him go was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life.  He was my AKC, "Responsibly bred" dog.  He was supposed to live a full life.  He didn't. And he took a piece of my heart with him.

When Dudley was 10 1/2, he got sick.  

The vets diagnosed him with Kidney failure and a very rare gallbladder condition.  They asked me if he had gotten into anything; any poisons, bad foods, medicine.  I knew that he didn't since he was always by my side.  He didn't even go outside by himself.  Again, the vets assured me that this was no fault of my own.  He also had "bad genes".  His vet said that she had only seen one dog with levels that bad and he actually lived for a year after his diagnosis.  She expected that if Dudley made it through this, he might live for 3 more months.  I couldn't believe I was going through this again.  Dudley was my Little Man, my best buddy and I didn't want him to go.  Luckily for me, just like his brother, Dudley rallied.  He lived for 2 1/2 more happy years after this diagnosis. Letting him go was easier.  I was an experienced doggie nurse by that time and I knew I had done everything for him.  I knew it was his time.  We were peaceful and and my arms were wrapped around my boy.   His last breath kissed my cheek and I feel it there every time I think of him.

So why dedicate this blog to my BREEDER dogs? 

I'm dedicating this blog and all of my passion for Rescue Dogs to Murray and Dudley because without the joy they brought to me, I wouldn't have become the dog lover I am now.  Without their shortened lives, I wouldn't have learned the dangers of buying ("responsible") breeder dogs. Without their medical problems, I wouldn't have researched and learned the sad reality that AKC certified dogs aren't really anything to brag about.  

After Murray died, I began my search for a rescue dog and I know he helped to guide Gracie and Florida Little Dog Rescue into my life.  When Dudley got sick, I found Chloe and learned that with a lot of love and a lot of patience, an untrained, untrusting and unloving rescue dog could turn out to be one of the best dogs ever!  And without Murray and Dudley showing me the true spirit of the Maltese breed, I wouldn't have volunteered to foster, accidentally fall in love with...and adopt my Sunshine, a broken, scared and scarred senior Maltese.  

Murray and Dudley definitely left pawprints on my heart and this blog is for them.