The end of an era

RWilson2526 · #1 11-22-2010, 05:27 PM

Well after 20 years plus of being a multiple pet owner we finally find ourselves with no pets. Still have 2 gold fish and 3 hermit crabs but they dont really count.

This is definitely not a post about how bad I feel that our last dog died...I'm almost starting to think its quite the opposite and more like "thank god that last dog finally died". When I met my wife she was a package deal...came with her two childhood dogs...2 smelly old mutts that were great dogs though....dog #1 died and replaced him with dog #3. Dog number 2 died and replaced him with dog #4. Shortly after picked up dog # 5. (3 in the house at one time). At the same time had 2 cats and picked up a 3rd one (dumped on us temporarily by some "frieds" whe never came back.

Lost 2 of the dogs about 4 years ago and replaced him with a beagle....2nd dog died 2 years ago . The 2 cats died a couple of months ago and we just put the beagle down on Thursday.....

So in our heyday we had 3 dogs and 3 cats (and a couple parakeets which are also gone in the last year or two) and today find our selves completely with no animals.

Point of this post is to state that you have no idea how much work (and money) is entailed in having pets until they are gone. man is it weird not worrying about leaving a bag of garbage out on the back porch, or being able to leave the gate open to the yard or not leaving your sandwich on the coffee table because somebodies gonna snatch it....

Now the real question how long can I get my wife to wait before getting another one!....I would like a good old dog again sometime I think...one that likes to swim and all but man the break is SWEET for now...

phatdaddy · #2 11-22-2010, 07:13 PM

i feel your pain & joy. we have 3 dogs now and the one next door is over here more than his house. we have 2 old dogs and a new one that was going to be my daughters, but you know how that goes. i had to have a lab put down and my daughter was potty trained in the same week. it was like getting a $100 a week raise.

tsubaki · #3 11-22-2010, 07:41 PM

Right off the top of my head we've had at least 10 dogs the last 25 or so years (cats don't count). All but 2 were strays we picked up, best ones ever.
Currently got 2 outside dogs, 2 inside dogs, a one eyed outside cat and a Betafish that's been living in a quart jar on the kitchen countertop for over 3 years.
Just gotta have animals around!

Blue_Runner · #4 11-23-2010, 01:32 PM

Quote:

Point of this post is to state that you have no idea how much work (and money) is entailed in having pets until they are gone.

YOU COULD NOT HAVE SAID THAT ANY BETTER!

However, I do love my two 14 y.o. cats and my 4 y.o. old dog with a passion. It is those two smelly guinee pigs that drive me nuts! All they do is eat and crap, eat and crap, etc. The food ain't cheap either. I think about how much money I spend on pet food all the time. Sometimes at the grocery store I'll have more $ worth of pet food than people food on the checkout counter. Since the cats are old they have had several teeth pulled and are no longer able to eat dry food. They eat 4 cans of wet food per day which adds up to over $3 per day just for the 2 cats. I'm easily in for over $200 per month on pet food. WOW!

I can see it now, when they are gone the wife and kids will be begging for another cat (or two). Not on my watch. Never again. One dog is PLENTY!! Or maybe 2 when I get my fence up. But sure as heck not 3.

Good post!

reelapeelin · #5 11-23-2010, 04:10 PM

Definately one of the more "bitter-sweet" threads I recall on this forum...if my present Lab lives to 15, I'll be 68 years old myself...don't know if I'll want to start w/a new one at that age or not...we'll have to see...till then, I think I'll keep the old shrimp stealer around...

For sure won't replace the Jack Russells...if my wife wants to, that'll be up to her...have really enjoyed having them over the years, but they're a lot to deal with...

spareparts · #6 11-23-2010, 06:34 PM

When I first met my wife, she had a Daschund, I was never a little dog person, I grew up with a Lab/Chessie mix that was one of the best dogs ever. My room mate had a cat, I wasn't trilled with it, but it was a pet, he paid for the up keep and his closet was the cats crapper. After my wife and I married, that daschund became one of my best friends. He pased away due to a seisure, most upexpectantly. I missed that dog as much as my lab/chessie. My wife and I talked it over and we decied that we would wait till our second child was born(she was pregnant with Kendall at the time) and became a little older, but due to the overwhelming issues that Kendall(and my Wife) has had, we still hadn't gotten a dog. I kept talking about it to my wife, even found a litter of lab/chessies(a whole another story) but ended up getting another dashund(black and tan this time), we are going thru the whole house training thing, and yes at times he's mroe trouble than he's worth, but he's part of our family.