Category: Pets

The Three Musketeers
“All for one and one for all.”

For any of you who have read my previous posts, you know how our Bernese Mountain Dog, Chloe, came into our lives. And as my wife has repeated many times since, Chloe has been a life changing experience for us, as well as one of the best decisions that we have ever made.

So it is with a heavy heart and great sadness that I have to report on Chloe’s passing. She far surpassed the vet’s expectations regarding longevity, but for Kate & I our time with her was still far too short and we’re grieving deeply. She passed with her head in my lap, and Kate holding her paw.

One of Chloe’s greatest joys was when all three of us were together, whether it be playing in the yard, watching tv, or all of us snuggling in her dog bed, with Chloe touching both of us simultaneously. Which is why early on we adopted our nickname “The Three Musketeers”.

For Chloe, her inner circle consisted of Chloe, Kate and myself, and in just that order of importance. There were many family & friends that Chloe loved, and who loved her. And while enjoying their attention, and without them realizing it, she would often position herself between them and us, never quite letting them into that all important inner circle of “The Three Musketeers”.

Unlike most dogs, Chloe was not fazed by fireworks, gunfire or thunderstorms. However, let Kate or myself sneeze and she would come running from wherever she was with her tail between her legs and we had to comfort & reassure her that we were ok. Almost every night, approximately a 1/2 hour after I went to bed, Chloe would get up, place her nose on the edge of my side of the bed and if I didn’t acknowledge her right away, she would start whining, and each whine would get louder until I would reach over, pet her on the head, give her a hip massage, then assure her that I was ok and that she should go to bed, at which point she would.

Over the years while out with Chloe she was attacked a few times by other dogs, and though she never fought back, she never ran away either. I think she thought of herself as a decoy drawing the attacker’s attention away from me. Thankfully, neither of us was ever seriously hurt.

Chloe was brutal to her toys, many of which didn’t make it to the end of the day without being shredded. However, there was one toy from my mother that she always treated differently. It was a stuffed duck wearing goggles and a cape. It came with a hand-held launcher and when it was flying thru the air it would make a funny quacking noise. Well, the first time we launched it Chloe went running after it, and when it landed it was still making that noise, and Chloe must have thought it was alive. So, she gently picked it up and carefully brought it back to us, and she handled that toy very tenderly from that point forward, so we always called it her ” baby”.

Chloe liked to play soccer and was very adept at using her front paws to move the ball and block you from stealing it. Chloe couldn’t tell the difference between a soccer ball and a basketball, so whenever the neighbor children would leave their basketball out Chloe would immediately run over to it, grab it in her mouth and try to play soccer with us. On three different occasions she punctured the ball before we could get it, so I went out one day and purchased three new basketballs, one for each of the neighbor’s homes who lost one to Chloe. Needless to say, the kids were delighted with their new treasures.

Her favorite toy was the rubber squeaker ball. I remember one Spring day in particular when I spent 4 hours working out in the yard and she squeaked her rubber ball the entire time……..THE ENTIRE TIME! The first rubber squeaker ball lasted about a year before she figured out how to pull the squeaker out. After that, the squeaker in each new rubber ball lasted for a shorter period of time, until finally she was able to destroy it in less than an hour. So from that point forward she was only allowed to play with it when we could keep an eye on her, so as to make sure it lasted for an appropriate amount of time.

For reasons unknown to us, Chloe wasn’t fond of landscaping. As a puppy she tore up Kate’s newly planted ground cover along the lower patio. I can still picture her going along the foundation and pulling the groundcover up in clumps until she had it all out. Needless to say, Kate wasn’t impressed! When we were doing yard work, Chloe would pounce on fallen branches and chew them into small pieces, thus making them harder to clean up, all the while thinking she was helping us. She also loved to pounce on and shred fallen leaves and I often wondered if that was due to her being born in the autumn, thus reliving some of her earliest memories.

Chloe went to work with me almost every day. She loved to go from office to office getting scratches, attention and the occasional treat from the employees. One of my former assistants came back from lunch one day visibly upset. She then proceeded to tell me, with Chloe standing nearby, the story of how she had just accidently hit and killed a Canadian goose with her car, and how terrible that was. As my assistant and I discussed the situation, Chloe left the office and came back with her stuffed goose toy and in a show of affection, presented it to my assistant. Needless to say, that somehow made everything better. A huge thank you to all of the staff for your many kindnesses to Chloe over the years.

One unusual aspect of Chloe was that she LOVED to visit her Vet! She couldn’t wait to get out of the car and go in and meet all of her friends. And with that in mind, I would like to thank Dr. Otto and her entire staff for always being so caring and kind when it came to Chloe’s care. She loved you all!

And then there’s Chloe favorite place of all to visit, K-9 Kamp doggie daycare. As soon as we would turn the corner onto Bridge St. and mention doggie daycare, she knew where we were headed and would stand up in the back seat and start whining. We had to be careful when opening the rear door of the car as Chloe couldn’t wait to get out. Chloe made many friends there, human and animal, so a special thank you to Chad and his entire staff for giving Chloe such joy & happiness.

To the world Chloe was just a dog, but for Kate and I, Chloe became our world. We learned how to make our home dog safe, and when Chloe’s medical condition worsened with age, we learned how to make our home senior dog friendly. She has left a permanent impression on our hearts and has left us with memories of joy, kindness, and unconditional love. She was a big dog with a big heart, soulful brown eyes and a gentle kiss. I only hope that we were able to return as much love to her as she did to us. I know that Chloe has taught us so much about giving love, being patient, being happy and not to be afraid to be silly. Yes, to the world she was just a dog, but to us she was a continual lesson in everything that is good in life and more. May she rest in peace and may she be able to squeak her toys to her heart’s content while basking in God’s love. And one day may the Three Musketeers be reunited once again, “All for one and one for all”

In closing I think Anatole France said it best, “Until one has loved a dog, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.”

Chloe – Bernese Mountain Dog 09/20/2009 – 06/02/2021.

May you sleep in heavenly peace baby girl. What an adventure it has been!

(Pictured above my mother-in-law Anne with her new friend Eva)

As many of you know who read my blog, my wife and I own a Bernese Mountain Dog (BMD) named Chloe. What most people don’t know is that every June in Ithaca at Myers Park on the lake there is a BMD picnic, where the Bernese Mtn. Dog Club of the Finger Lakes ( http://www.bmdcfl.com ) hosts BMD’s and their owners. Make no mistake, this picnic is for and all about the dogs.

This is the first year that my mother-in-law attended, and by all counts I think she had a great day! And it certainly didn’t hurt that it was a picture perfect weather day. It’s always amazing to see so many Bernese Mtn. dogs assembled in one area, with each and every one of them looking magnificent! And it doesn’t hurt when one of the participants, such as 4 month old Eva, takes a liking to you. Eva was a true sweetheart of a dog, and as you can see in the above picture, she’s going to be a large one!

The attendees of the picnic are requested to bring a raffle prize, a dish to pass, and a $5.00/family admission fee. We feel that’s quite reasonable, especially for such a fun and relaxing day. Chloe starts whining as soon as we enter the park, and can’t wait to get out of the car and meet all of her new friends. She always settles down after we make the rounds to meet as many dogs and people as possible.

The picnic always includes a number of activities and competitions for the dogs and their owners. This year a few of the owners had their dog qualify for the Good Citizen certificate, and my wife even helped with the process. We decided to save ourselves the embarrassment of entering Chloe as we have not kept up with her training, and therefore she doesn’t always do as asked. And trust me, the embarrassment would have been on us, not Chloe, as all good dog owners (and dog trainers) know that a dog’s behavior is a reflection of an owner’s consistenancy, or lack thereof, with their pet.

(Picture of Chloe competing in a previous year)

During the raffle, Kate and I won three different times, and we brought home a number of different items, including a handpainted BMD beer mug, dog treats & toys, a basket filled with five different plush BMD toys, dog picture kitchen hot pads, and a BMD magnetic bumper sticker. Probably would have been a good day to play the lottery as well!

We met a number of BMD’s at the picnic, and I have to say that the award for the largest Bernese goes to a male named Radar. A close second would have to be his son, Turbo. Both were gentle giants. But when it was time to go, one of them decided he wasn’t ready yet and as he was being led to the car he decided to dig his paws in and refused to move forward. It was quite a sight to see the owner tugging on the leash trying to get him to move forward, and as I walked by she said, “I need my husband.”, which gave me a laugh. Her husband came along, and before you knew it, both dogs were loaded in the big SUV, and off they went.

Chloe’s favorite meet turned out to be a Golden Retriver that she spotted across the green. As soon as she saw the Golden she stood up and started whining. Luckily the owner came over our way and introduced his Golden, Misty, to Chloe. They both seemed very happy to make each other’s acquaintance and had a nice visit.

When it was time to head home Kate asked if we could take the back roads as opposed to the Interstate. I’m an Interstate kind of driver, but I agree, it’s nice to take the long road home once in awhile.

My  mother-in-law had been in the area a couple weeks ago attending a show, and remembered a roadside restaurant that was coming up and thought it might be nice to stop there, so we did. It’s called Bob’s BBQ, and it’s located on State Rte 281 in Homer. It was very busy, and there was a line of people waiting to be served, but the line moved quickly, and our order was filled perfectly. The food was great, and they have a great outdoor dining area that allows dogs as long as they’re on a leash, which made Chloe (and us) happy!

We finished the evening on our patio with some of my wife’s homemade strawberry shortcake, which after pie, is my favorite dessert. Kate took her mother home while I cleaned up from dessert, and then collasped on the sofa with Chloe laying next to me. It was a fun but exhausting day for both of us.

And to all of the dog lovers out there, the annual picnic is open to all dogs and their owners. So, if you would like to meet a lot of BMD’s at once, as well as dog breeders and trainers, and people who are devoted to all dogs, but especially Bernese Mountain Dogs, then I encourage you to attend next year. Who knows, you just might meet a new friend that’s up for adoption and embark on a whole new adventure together!

And when it comes to Bernese Mountain Dogs, I think a lady that I met at our garage sale a few years ago said it best. She came up our driveway and spotted Chloe in the back yard and immediately recognized her as a BMD and asked if she could meet her. Come to find out, this woman used to have a Bernese and missed it terribly. And while reminiscing about her Bernese she said something that has always stuck with me – “You love your dog, but you fall in love with a Bernese.” I can’t tell you how many strangers I have met when I have Chloe with me that can’t say enough good things about a Bernese that they had at one time or another, and what wonderful memories they made together, and how much they LOVED that dog. And if you should ask my wife, who never had a dog before Chloe, I think she would agree.

Thank you for reading, and hoping that your dog days of summer are happy ones!

Chloe

Chloe is our dog, and she is a Bernese (not Bermese) Mountain Dog. We adopted her on November 29th, 2009 when she was 9 weeks old.

I grew up with dogs, along with a number of different pets over the years. We had cats, gold fish, hamsters, rabbits & a couple of parakeets. You bond differently with different species of animals, but from my perspective it was always the dogs & cats that left a forever paw print on your heart and in your memory.

My wife on the other hand only had cats. She loves cats, so I gave her one for Easter the first year that we were married, and that cat, Panther, lived 15 years. And though she was a gift to my wife, Panther ended up being my cat. It was after Panther passed away that I found out that I’m allergic to cats! So, I realized that I could never have another cat, and I really wasn’t in a hurry to get another pet.

Then one Sunday Kate and I went to Staples to pick up some items. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your perspective, Staples wasn’t open yet. So Kate decided to go into the Dollar Store to look around, while I decided to play with the puppies in the pet store that was next to Staples. I had done this numerous times before, usually without Kate knowing, but I never had one of the puppies catch my interest enough to want to bring it home. But be aware, I had been asking Kate for a dog for years, to which she always replied no, no, what part of no are you not getting??!! You see, Kate never had a dog, never wanted a dog, and never liked dogs! And, I always wanted a Golden Retriever, and no other dog was going to do.

So into the pet store I go, and the store would always have a few puppies near the front window playing together that you could interact with as well. So I played with all them for awhile, but there was no Golden Retriever in the bunch, so I wandered to the rear of the store where the rest of the puppies were kenneled in glass pens. That is where I spotted a small tri-colored puppy napping. The puppy woke up, took one look at me, and walked over to the glass where I was standing to get a closer look. I tell everyone that this is when she was sizing me up with an imaginary tape measure and decided that I was big enough to handle her when she was full grown and that I would do. She then walked back to the far end of the pen, sat down, and just gave me the cutest puppy face she could muster.

Just then one of the store clerks walked by and I asked if I could take a closer look at the black puppy, and she asked, “Oh, the Bernese Mountain Dog?!” To which I simply replied, “never heard of them, but yes, that one.” The clerk retrieved the puppy and placed the two of us in a special 1/2-walled area with a door that was used for people to get familiar with the dogs. Now I might want to mention that Kate had been texting me letting me know that Staples was open and it was time to go, to which I would ignore, or would reply with, “ok, playing with one of the puppies.” I asked Kate to come into the store a few times and meet the puppy but she had no interest & refused. Well, eventually she came in, for no other reason than to drag me out, but I got her to spend a little time with the dog, and after 2 hours Kate said enough, it’s time to go, without the dog.

So off we went, and the puppy went back into her kennel. On the way home I called friends and family that already had dogs to get their perspective on dog ownership, and as much as they loved their pets they didn’t recommend that we get a dog, due to the fact that a dog does tie you down, much more than a cat does, which only bolstered Kate’s case for not getting one.

Not to be detered, once we got home I started researching Bernese Mountain Dogs, and all the pros & cons of owning one. Come to find out, they are a large breed dog, with females weighing in around 100 lbs., and males weighing up to 150 lbs. Not having owned a dog since I lived at home with my parents I couldn’t quite visualize how big of a dog that would be, but in my mind’s eye it seemed like a reasonable size. I mean really, how does that saying go, “Go big or go home”! I’m all about big!!

Later that day we had to go out to run some more errands, and after which and before going home I asked Kate if we could stop at the pet store one more time, to which she replied, “Really Michael, are you serious? I don’t want a dog! You already spent 2 hours in the store and I don’t think we need to go back there.” Well, long story short, she finally relented and we stopped back at the pet store for another look. Believe it or not, we spent another 2 hours there playing with the puppy. I even took the puppy out of the 1/2 wall enclosure and let it run around the store, and that’s when it happened! You see, during my research I found out that BMD’s are bred to be very good with children and protective of them. So, in walks a family with two small children while I’m playing with the puppy. The puppy spots the children walking down the aisle, she stops in her tracks, her ears perked up, and she went bounding over to them with great enthusiasm. At only 9 weeks old the dog recognized children! You see, my wife and I have 21 nieces & nephews, and numerous great-nieces & nephews, and it was at that moment that I realized how good she would be with all of them and I had to have her.

There was only one obstacle standing between me and the puppy, and that was Kate. So I walked over to Kate, with puppy in my arms, and after Kate saying no numerous times earlier in the day, she took one look at me holding the puppy and said, “You want the puppy don’t you?” To which I simply replied, “I do.”

Now, what you need to know at this point is that this all happened within days of my birthday, our anniversary, and Thanksgiving. Kate looked at me and said, “Fine, you can have the dog, but it’s your dog to take care of. Happy Birthday, Happy Anniversary, Happy Thanksgiving………..Merry Christmas, …………Happy New Year……..” At which time I replied, “Ok, ok, I got it!! Thank you honey!!” And Kate tells everyone that we both stood there with tears in our eyes, mine were tears of joy, while Kate’s were tears of fear! Having never had a dog, Kate had no idea what to expect or what to do, and quite frankly I thought I did, but was I in for the surprise of a lifetime!

We sealed the deal with the store clerk, and Kate went about the store picking out everything in pink- leash, collar, toys and feeding bowls (much to my dismay, as I wanted a black collar & leash, but knew better than to argue at this point). And Kate even named her before we left the store, Chloe. Unbeknownst to either of us at the time, so began a life changing event of which we are still experiencing, but I can tell you this, at this point we have no regrets and hopefully still have many memories to make with Chloe, some of which I hope to share with you, as there are many!

Kate with Chloe on adoption day – 11/29/2009