Foster "Buddyman" Dalton

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Foster (aka "Buddyman") 1992 - July 7, 2006 To truly appreciate Foster you had to know his story. He was a corgi mix with a head like a lion's mane, short legs and a long hairy tail. Like a lot of "accidental" mixed breeds, Foster was a beautiful dog with a precious soul. But the start to his life was apparently less than pleasant. One evening in 1993 during rush hour traffic, my soon to be mother in law's friend was coming home from work. It was raining and near dark outside. Suddenly, the car up ahead of traffic stops and someone throws a dog out into the median. The car takes off again, but my mother in law's friend, an avid dog lover, stops in horror and rescues him. She brings home this pitiful, hungry, terrified, and obviously abused dog home. She nurses him back to health, but she cannot keep him as her home is full of pets. Through another friend or relative she learns of a family's desire to "foster" a dog for their terminally ill daughter. So now the dog has a name and another temporary home. A short time later, the child passes and the family returns the dog. In 1994, my soon to be husband and I returned from college and were preparing to move into our new apartment. Our wedding was later that Fall. My soon to be mother in law mentioned that her friend needed to find a home for a very sweet two year old dog that needed a stable home life. We agreed to meet with the dog. Meeting Foster for the first time was precious and bittersweet! He was so beautiful, yet so pitiful. He had the sad soulful eyes of an abused child and carried himself with little to none of the pride all dogs should show. It was understood quickly that we were taking this dog in and giving him all the love, shelter and respect we could muster for as long as he lived. The first six months were spent getting Foster over a terrible fear of keys. Whenever you picked up a set of keys, Foster would shake, shrink back and sometimes wet himself or vomit. We often wondered if someone had abused him by throwing keys at him or if it was a fear of leaving to another home that brought such a response. Nevertheless, we were always careful not to shake our keys in his presence. Foster was a near perfect pet. He was not destructive, he rarely barked, was extremely loving and deeply grateful. He was our pride and joy. Then in 1998 the first baby came! Foster was less than thrilled when we brought her home. He wasn't even curious about her. He just ignored her as if maybe she'd go away. In time though they cultivated their relationship and I believe she will always treasure him as her first pet. As our daughter grew, we decided to get another puppy to show her how to care for a pet. We also thought it would be nice for Foster to have a canine companion of his own, so Freya Jane became part of our family. She is also a corgi, but was the runt of the litter and therefore has her own set of emotional issues. Foster did seem to enjoy her company, but it was getting clear that Foster was aging and the looming thought of his passing was upon us. I was thankful for my time spent as a veterinary assistant. It helped me to at least know what euthanasia was like, when the time came. In 2004, our second daughter was born. Foster didn't think too much of this new baby either. Actually, he seemed to be caring less and less about lots of things. Sure, he still enjoyed the outside, getting treats and loving; but there were those times when he seemed to forget where he was or what he was doing. He slept during the days and paced our floors at night. Our poor sweet Foster was acting his age and showing it too. His eyes had slowly clouded, his fur color faded, and he moved more slowly. Despite it all, he always knew his family and delighted in our attention. In early 2006, Foster was approximately 14 years old and still determined to hang in there. Canine Alzheimer's was taking him slowly though. We tried medication but the effects were short lived. His back legs also seemed to bother him occasionally. Nevertheless, his good days outnumbered his bad. He still seemed joyful and secure and rarely whined in discomfort. I made him a big soft bed in each of our downstairs rooms to keep him as comfortable as possible. We would act as Foster's "hospice". A loving, comfortable, familiar place to be in one's final months or days. So, we waited for the inevitable and I prayed God would take him sweetly in the night so I wouldn't have to make the hard decision to put him down. Today, July 7, 2006 is a sad day for us. Foster was euthanized at 4:30 this afternoon. Over last few days he really seemed to deteriorate. He whined all night, was not able to digest any of his food and appeared thinner and weakened. I spoke with out vet and we made an appointment for him. The girls said their good-byes to Foster and my husband and I went in together. He only weighed 20 lbs, which was a 10% weight loss over the last year. Our wonderful vet with tears in her eyes told us euthanasia was reasonable choice at this point. My husband said his good-byes and left the room. I remained with him. I held his precious "lion's mane" head in my hands, told him how much we loved him and that he'd never be forgotten. In less than five seconds it was over. He was gone. I will always treasure my time with Foster. He was the sweetest, most gentle dog you could ever hope to know and he will always be remembered with tremendous affection and a catch of my breath. Good night Foster, you were a wonderful, faithful companion. We love you!

From:	mantiess@gmail.com	(Tue Dec 12 20:28:02 2006)
I love "Foster" so much and im so sad for you.