Scooter

When my daddy died, I inherited his little dog, Scooter. She's the only dog he ever paid for and he drove a hard bargain for her.  My mom never cared for her much, so Daddy would sneak her in the house on occasion and let her join him in his recliner.  Always an outside dog, she was never very comfortable inside.  She got snake bit when she was pretty young and spent a week in the vet hospital - also a first for one of Daddy's dogs - the vet, not the bite.  From then on, she had a vengence for rattlesnakes and didn't stop barking until someone came to kill it - that is if she didn't shake it to death herself.

It took her months to feel comfortable with us after we moved her, and she kept trying to go back to her home.  When we went to the pasture on the 4 wheeler, we would take her along, but when we got there she would  jump out, go exploring, and beat us to the house.   She was a little stubborn and didn't usually come when you called. 

Last year, she quit eating and wouldn't leave her house.  In the mornings I would have Ted look to see whether she was alive, and the third morning she popped her head up I decided that she just wasn't ready to give it up.  We went to the vet and she got better.  The last year, she took medication for her heart, was hard of hearing, and refused to eat dog food. 

I knew there was no way we could take her with us to North Dakota, so I asked my neighbor if she and her girls would take care of her, knowing the end of her life might be soon.  They loved Scooter too, because she visited them from time to time.  When she went visiting, she walked on the highway, never in the ditch.  I don't know how she kept from getting run over. 

Scooter lived a luxurious life at  McCowen Farms - with a plush indoor bed, a heated dog house, and people food.  In fact, she sometimes shared her warm condo with the cat and the neighbor's dog.  While away Carol has twice let us know that the end was nigh - then sent a text saying say she was running and jumping in the yard.  But today really was her last day. 

If dogs are in heaven she is sitting in Daddy's lap while he reads the news. 

Our best guess is that she was around 20 years old. 

Carol has a beautiful tribute to Scooter on her blog: 

Carol McCowen Photography

Thanks Carol and family for loving her, too.