Stahlke Adoption

My Dear One

May 1995
Early in the morning, I leashed up Alabama and took her into the front yard. She started barking furiously, and I spotted a young dog in the next yard. Alabama's reaction scared him off, so we finished our walk and went back indoors.

Thirty minutes later, as Jonathan and I left for work, I took a glance at my newly-planted flower garden in the side yard. Being Texas in May, the weather was already muggy and warm. The young dog had made a resting place by digging up my nasturtiums and laying in the cool damp soil. I remember distinctly that I should have been mad, but his warm engaging look at me was endearing. I thought, "You're lucky you are so cute!"

May 2002
Dakota had always been athletic, bounding up steps almost two at a time. He could have jumped our four-foot fence if it had occurred to him to be disobedient. So it struck me as odd when I saw his hesitancy to walk up our front staircase. A day or two later, he chased a squirrel in the back yard and ran square into our 150-year old oak tree. We then realized that he had gone blind. It was awful to look into his beautiful brown eyes and see no recognition, just a blank stare.

One of the vets at our animal hospital told us to wait over the weekend until they could schedule a glaucoma test. But we were worried; the suddenness of his blindness and some drainage from his eyes didn't look like glaucoma to us. We contacted an opthamology clinic for dogs, were given an immediate appointment, and drove right away to the other side of Chicago. Dakota was diagnosed with a urinary infection, which had caused excess fluid in his eyes to partially detach his retinas. The treatment was massive amounts of steroids, which could kill him as well as fix the problem. There wasn't time for tests, for he'd be irreversibly blind in two days. We took the risk, he survived the treatment, and his sight was restored.

May 2011
Our sixteen-year old Dakota had far out-lived his life expectancy, and he continued to bless our family and provide steady companionship to our Dachsund puppy. But his health started failing badly about six weeks ago, and last Thursday night he took a turn for the worse. We could no longer hold off his pain through medication. Yesterday, we took him to the animal hospital, and our fears were confirmed. There would be no getting better. Jonathan had said his goodbye at home, but at the office Kola and I had about ten minutes alone with Dakota. Kola spotted a jar of dog treats, and we broke one to split between our two dogs. I was glad Dakota could have one more treat, for he always loved them so much.

The vet first administered a sedative to relax Dakota, before a second injection would stop his heart. As the sedative took effect, I looked into his beautiful brown eyes. He still knew me. It took a few minutes before he gently closed his eyes and lay his head down. I left the room then, since he was no longer aware. With one backward glance, I saw that he lay comfortably for the first time in days, relaxed and breathing slowly.

That night at our family devotion, I requested the following hymn stanza:

Abide with me, fast falls the eventide.
The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide.
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.

posted by Stahlkes @ 9:51 AM