A Tribute to Tanner

Our good old dog, Tanner, died unexpectedly last night. We are still in shock, I think, and feeling pretty sad. He died at home and we are thankful that it happened quickly and hope he wasn't in too much pain. We aren't really sure what happened - it came out of the blue that he looked like he had eaten too much or had digestion issues...I gave him water in the evening and he was wagging his tail...that is the last time I saw him alive.

Even though our dogs are approaching 10 years this summer and have been with us since our first year of marriage, we never would have thought that Tanner would go before Addy. He was always a tough dog and almost nothing rattled him - while Addy is the more fragile one and we can see the years in the white around her face. But, now Addy is alone and she will miss him greatly...

Through the years and from the beginning, Tanner was full of energy - a lot of it - and he loved to play, endlessly. Early in our marriage we felt it was time to get some pets and when this little yellow lab that looked nearly white began to tug on Benjy's keys, he stole our hearts and we took him home. Tanner was my first pet as an adult - living away from my parents home. Tanner and Addy have travelled Canada, the USA, and Mexico with us. We had two litters of puppies with them. We spent some quality times with them in the park near our apartment when we lived in Louisville - chasing squirrels. We spent the evening walking and watching them play the evening I went into labor with Reece and they forever fell lower on the priority list in our family. He has escaped and been lost on the streets, sometimes more than once, of every city we have lived in - always coming back safe and sound. He got into lots of trouble, getting into the house and digging in the trash and chewing things up. He had a guilty look on his face and hung his head in shame when he did something wrong. He slobbered immensely, especially when playing fetch - which he could have done continually if you would play with him. Tanner was a big dog. And a really good-looking dog. He was a good, loyal friend to us - even when we didn't give him the attention he likely needed and deserved. We still wonder what really happened to him and how it happened so fast. We will miss him a lot and are thankful for the good years we had with him.

We laid him to rest out in the country - outside of the city life he was always stuck with. With his ball beside him and with some sad hearts to have to say good-bye too soon.