Yesterday marked the 10th anniversary of me joining my family. I’ve always been struck by that line in It’s a Wonderful Life when Pa Bailey tells his son George, “you were born older.” In many ways I think that describes my role in this family. As the middle dog, I’ve experienced life as both the little brother, and the big, and through it all have shouldered more than my fair share of responsibility. As I gaze at this sugar face looking back at me, I’m feeling a bit nostalgic and would like to share with you my thoughts on the past decade.
It all began when I joined my family back on March 27, 2012. I was filled with anticipation to meet my big brother, Lemmy, and begin our adventures together. Too bad Lemmy didn’t feel the same way. After the initial shock of my arrival, in which he hid behind Dad, he was cordial. However, Lemmy soon retreated upstairs and hid there for a week. Did I do something wrong? Nonsense, I assumed that Lemmy was just embarrassed by how poorly he trained Mom and Dad. So I immediately took charge and tried to rectify their bad habits. A mission that I’m still working on to this day! However, despite that rocky first week, and months, we eventually grew to become dear friends.
In fact, despite being opposites in so many ways, Lemmy and I made a great team. He wasn’t brave. I was fearless. He preferred familiarity and staying within his comfort zone. I craved adventure and urged him onward. He was fussy about food. I happily ate anything he didn’t want. He disliked change. I embraced it! Alright, so technically I was a puppy at the time, and everything was new to me compared to Lemmy, but that’s besides the point. Take fetch for example. Lemmy insisted on playing, “Har, Har, I have the ball and you don’t.” Whereas, I was very receptive to learning how to play fetch, when our neighbor taught us the rules to what is now my favorite game. I also admit Lemmy taught me valuable lessons as well. It was him who instilled in me the importance of being on a schedule. Something I continue to enforce to this day.
From a very young age, I’ve always been a stickler for the rules. So it should come as no surprise that I was the valedictorian of my obedience classes, if they had a valedictorian, which they didn’t. I blame it on that whole philosophy that everyone deserves a participation award. Anyways, it soon became apparent to my teacher that I showed great promise at scent work. I spent many long hours training Dad to be my partner in the nose work trials. I even earned my official certification from the National Association of Canine Scent Work. But alas, I had to put all that on hold because Lemmy didn’t feel well. He needed Mom and Dad’s undivided attention, and not have them focus on my promising career as a champion.
At 5 years old Lemmy was dealing with a significant health problem that he was keeping a secret from Mom and Dad. I could smell the tumor growing inside him. In fact, I often smelled that spot on his head to try to alert our parents. But they were always telling me to leave him alone. Alright, I admit they had a valid point, because Lemmy was my favorite chew toy back then.
As time progressed, so did Lemmy’s illness to the point he couldn’t hide it anymore. Lemmy started having accidents. Again, being the new guy and barely a year old, I got blamed at first, despite my best efforts to explain to Mom and Dad the truth. Back in those days both Mom and Dad both worked outside of the house. Therefore I spent long hours in my crate, while watching Lemmy embarrassed to use the many piddle pads they had to lay out for him in the kitchen. Being a puppy, I admit I wasn’t quite ready to have the run of the house, and for Lemmy’s sake it was best that I didn’t spend the day pestering him to play. So I entertained myself while in the crate. I knew he appreciated my company though, because he would always sleep pressed close to the outside of my crate.
Those days were rough. Yet they were nothing compared to the even longer days when Mom and Dad would take Lemmy to see specialists, and I was left home alone. With each new diagnosis, they would return full of hope, while in reality Lemmy was just getting sicker. By the time they finally got the correct diagnosis of Cushing’s Disease, and realized I was sniffing at a tumor on his pituitary gland, Lemmy was in poor shape. It was then that I knew I had to put aside my puppy ways, stop pestering him to play, and spend many quiet hours just laying by his side.
A few months after my second birthday, Lemmy crossed Rainbow Bridge. Those were dark days. Our hearts were all broken. Although I no longer needed to spend time in a crate, I would frequently sneak into Lemmy’s, bury my nose in his bed, and breathe deeply just to smell him again. However, I knew it was my responsibility to get Mom and Dad out into the world again. That’s when we started going on grand adventures! Mom and Dad couldn’t bear the thought of going to Lemmy’s favorite places, so instead I encouraged them to explore new ones. With each new mountain we climbed, and trail we hiked, I was always encouraging them forward to explore what was around the next bend. Those were wonderful months!
However, I knew something was missing. We weren’t complete as a family. I needed a brother. And thankfully, my Momma Sage agreed! Asa arrived home on January 24, 2015. Alright, I admit I was so excited to meet Asa, I may have accidentally “marked” him as mine. Anyways, it was just a few days before my third birthday, and once again I rose to the challenge. It was my job to train Asa to be a great dog like me! However, that’s a lot of responsibility for a dog barely out of his “terrible twos,” and the reverse may have happened where I started regressing and acting like a puppy again. But do you blame me? Instead of enjoying my carefree puppy years, I was caring for a sick older brother. It was time to let loose and have fun! And boy did Asa and I have fun! I even started this blog to tell everyone about our adventures!
Whereas Lemmy tolerated me, Asa worshipped me. Even better, Mom and Dad were finally listening to me too. Shortly after Asa’s arrival, they reevaluated their priorities, and both changed to careers that would allow them to work from home. Now they could finally spend more time with me! Asa doesn’t know how good he has it having Mom and Dad always home to answer his every need. No anxiously waiting for Mom to come home, to play fetch. No more wondering when Dad would return after being away long hours for work. No uncertain schedule for neighborhood patrol. Nope, my early days of chaos were replaced with order and routine, and I love it.
Once again though just as I was hitting my stride with Asa, our family faced tragedy, with the sudden decline and death of Grandpa. Being the older and more responsible one, just like George Bailey, I put aside my puppy ambitions and focused on putting my family first. So I took charge again, by becoming a good role model for Asa, by helping Mom, Dad, and Grandma through the grieving process. It was during this time I realized I needed to refocus my efforts from Asa to training my parents instead. Because I lacked official certification as a therapy dog, I wasn’t allowed to visit Grandpa in the nursing home during his final weeks. Something that still haunts me, because Grandpa needed me. After his passing, I was determined to get certified, and spent two years working really hard on helping Mom and Dad get rid of the bad habits Lemmy and Asa taught them.
I came so close to helping Mom and Dad receive their Canine Good Citizen Certification, which is the first step toward becoming a certified therapy dog. But once again my goals had to be put on hold. This time the cause was way beyond my control. On the very evening I was to be tested, the world closed down due to the pandemic. Again, not something I thought I’d be dealing with when I left the whelping box years ago. However, if there’s one thing I learned over the years, it is how to pivot and adapt. So I faithfully guided my family through the strange new world of lockdowns, social distancing and vaccinations. Will I eventually attain my goal of becoming a certified therapy dog to visit nursing homes? I’m not sure. I’m getting older now, and to be honest I tire out quickly some days faster than others. But I promise to keep helping Asa train Mom and Dad, while answering the call of adventure.
I’ve seen a lot in my 10 years, and shouldered more than my fair share of responsibility starting at a young age. Somethings I’d like to change, others I wouldn’t change a bit. I’m just thankful that through it all I’ve been there for my family. It will be interesting to see where this incredible journey continues to take me! There are still plenty of mountains I want to climb and new adventures I’d like to share with my family as the little big brother!
