Lessons Learned

Mom and Goldie

Yesterday when mom mentioned to one of her brothers that she had been looking at old pictures of the doggy furiends she had growing up, she was surprised to learn that Goldie actually belonged to the brother she was visiting with.

Forty years ago, mom's much older brother had moved back to the family home after leaving the Navy. Uncle had gotten Goldie as a pup from a man living nearby, he claimed she was a Rat Terrier mix.

It always seemed to mom that Goldie had just disappeared one day, never to be seen again. When she asked uncle what had happened to his doggy, he told our mom something very disturbing. It made our mom very sad and she thought and thought before deciding to share it with our furiends and their pawrents and anyone else who might be reading my blog.

First you have to understand that when mom was a kid, most doggies were allowed to run loose all the time. It was normal for doggies to roam all around looking for love, cause back then people did not take their pets to be spayed or neutered. Most people felt altering an animal was a waste of money and some even thought it to be cruel. There were no rescue groups to teach the people and there were no laws telling them they could not let their pets roam.


So nothing was done to keep the doggies safely at home.



For the most part, people left the "strays" alone, but sadly there were some people who hated animals and were mad that their owners did not keep their pets from straying. These people, who thought the strays were a nuisance, also thought it was okay to do whatever they wanted to the animals since they had wandered onto their property. These wandering pets were often poisoned or even shot.


And because of this hate, sweet Goldie's life was ended early and very cruelly.


One day Goldie became very sick. So sick that my mom's brother rushed her to the vet. After doing an exam the vet said he believed Goldie had eaten some hamburger that had been mixed with ground glass.

Yes, you read that right.
Goldie had been fed ground glass!
She had wandered away from home and eaten some poisoned meat left out by a heartless hooman.


Uncle told our mom those words were like a punch to the stomach. Mostly cause he was shocked that anyone could be so evil, but also cause he knew he had failed to take good care of his dog. Uncle thought he was being nice by not tying his dog up or putting her behind a fence. But allowing Goldie to come and go as she pleased, had directly led to her death. So with a broken heart, he had to admit he had done Goldie no favor.

Well, that was not entirely true. Uncle asked the vet if anything could be done for his dog. The vet replied the kindest thing would be to put her to sleep, otherwise she would die a slow & painful death. So that is what my mom's brother did. He tearfully told Goldie goodbye, then sent her over the Rainbow Bridge.

RIP Goldie.


Mom wants to also share with you what happened to her very first dog, Queenie. Since Queenie had not been altered either, she often wandered and had given birth to several litters of very cute puppies. One autumn day a pregnant Queenie was slowly crossing the road to visit a nice old lady who always had a yummy treat for her favorite "stray". At the same time a big truck rumbled down the road, headed for the grain elevator up the hill. Apparently, the truck driver never knew he had run over a little dog and her unborn puppies. It's likely, with her being so small, he never even felt a bump.


RIP Queenie.



Mom knows these are horrible things for an animal lover to hear. But she believes some thing good can come from the telling of Goldie and Queenie's stories. We hope it will be a lesson learned and if it keeps just one dog safe, then it is a story worth telling.


Please spay and neuter your pets. And do not let them wander!