Our pets are very special, because they sense how we are feeling and they stand by us, sometimes more than those we love. Growing up in Redbank, we always had cats. It wasn’t until one day at work; I overheard a coworker complaining about taking care of her dad’s dog as he had just been diagnosed with MS. She was overwhelmed.  When she hung up the telephone, I asked her if she was looking for a home for her dad’s dog. I told her I may be able to help. She said she would ask her father.
                 A short while after, I went to meet her father with his dog, a miniature schnauzer named Schultzie. He was about 7 years old. I could tell he was well taken care of as he had a red plaid dog bed, a few leashes and some dog food as well as his papers and dog dish and grooming tools. He was peppy and stood against my dashboard all the way home wagging his tale and panting. When he entered my house, he pooped. Oh well, we will figure it out I thought. My husband came home and loved him immediately as did my kids. On the first day, I took the boys out and showed them how to walk the dog. This turned out to be a small disaster. Michael lost his balance and the dog pulled him out of his wheelchair. JT and I picked him up and put him back in his chair, with the seatbelt. Later that night when I had his leg stretched out in bed he started crying. Mike told me that his leg was really hurting, so off we went to the hospital. Mike had broken his leg from the fall. This was Schultzie’s first day in his new home.
                He was well trained and a polite for a dog. We quickly realized that he was the dog who didn’t think he was a dog. He loved to ride in boats I was told, sitting up high in the front seat of the boat with the water spraying him in the face. He was the same in the car. Most of the time, he would try to climb onto my lap but eventually he would have his head out the window smelling all those lovely smells at 60 mph. He had a cute little trot when he ran along beside me.
                Schultzie was pretty tolerant after I took in 2 more schnauzers over the years, one named Dukie and a female named Daisy Mae. Schultzie was the oldest and the more passive of my dogs. Dukie was next in age. He lived a few houses down the street and his owner was very sick. One day while walking Schultzie, the owner asked me if I would like another Schnauzer. I replied that I would love to have him. I gave them my name and number. Six months later a young woman brought him to my door as her mother, the owner had died. I thanked her and told her we would give him a good home. She told me that Dukie was angry because he had been ignored for some time as her mom was sick. I took him and had to call the vet for advice as he was very mean to Schultz. The vet told me to show Duke no attention for a week so he would know Schultz was the senior dog. It was difficult for me because he was so darn cute. After that he was a wonderful dog. He had a trot like a show dog, with a big chest and salt and pepper wiry hair.
The last dog we got was one that we wanted to bond with Michael. Michael and I drove to NH to meet with a schnauzer rescue. I paid for Daisy. She was six months old and very excitable, high stress, because her owner worked all day and Daisy spent the first six months in a cage for 9 hours a day. She is a handful and we are working with her.
                She is our only dog left. I had to put Dukie down a few years ago as he was all skin and bones, following me around the house. He had cancer with several complications. The vet told me that he had never seen a dog have the issues Duke had in all his 35 years as a vet. My husband and I were afraid he would die at home before we could get to the vet. I had spent much money finding what was wrong, but knew that he was getting worse. It broke our hearts to put him down but we did it out of love. We were both there with him, playing with his little face and patting him as he slipped away. I cried for months over Dukie. Daisy really missed Dukie as he was her playmate. They would romp around the house all day.
                One of the funniest  times I recall was when I bought some marrow bones for the dogs to chew on. Each dog had his own pillow and guarded their bones. They would not even go outside to do their business if their bones were on their pillows. When I did get one to come over for a treat, the other dog would snitch the bone and hide it. This went on all day, whenever one dog would leave the room. It was hysterical. Then the dog would come back and be looking for the bone he ‘knew ‘he left on his pillow. It was back and forth all day.
Last week we had to repeat the act of putting another dog down; this time Schultzie. It was sad but I knew he was very tired. He suffered a stroke at the groomer and Daisy was with him. She acted very strange for a few days. The groomer never said anything. I suspect she was scared as she forgot to take out the cotton plugs from his ears and their name tags were switched. I decided I would find a new groomer. I figured he was very old anyhow, that it may have happened naturally. We had been carrying him up and downstairs for a month. The weight loss was significant for the past two weeks. The last week, he stopped eating anything and he slept most of the day. My husband and I met at the vet and held him. My husband said before we went into the office, “Schultzie, the dog who didn’t think he was a dog”. Again, our hearts were broken to say goodbye.  I can rest easy when I think of the joy all my dogs have brought into my life. Perhaps one of the nicest things I received was a card from his former owner. He thanked us for giving Schultzie a loving home. That was nice.