August 2, 2023 • 35 mins
Sherlock was a spunky, fearless, stubborn little guy that forever changed Leslie's life. Hear their story and also find comfort in our conversation about some of the harder privileges that come along with being loved by a frosty face.
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Episode Transcript
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Julie Jackson (00:02):
Hey, welcome to happy tales of happy tales, the
podcast where you'll hearstories of the way pups have
touched our hearts and ourlives. So for the next few
minutes, let everything else goand just listen and smile. I'm
your host, Julie JacksonFriends, today I share a
(00:23):
conversation with you that I hadwith my dear friend Leslie. Like
many wonderful people in mylife, we met through one avenue
and bonded through dogs. Shealso just has a really long
family heritage of all kinds of,of animal husbandry in her life.
(00:43):
So I just encourage you to hearabout her spunky, stubborn
little Sherlock. But I also wantto point out at the end of our
conversation, we addressed someof the the less glamorous
privileges of having a frostyface and having an old dog, we
(01:04):
we talked about just some of thedecisions that when you're when
you spend many years being lovedby dog, you have the privilege
of making, even though they'rehard, and some of those end of
life decisions and helping themcross the Rainbow Bridge. So I
encourage you to listen. Andeven though sometimes it's a sad
(01:26):
topic, it's also a very sweettopic. And it's also I think,
important to know that you'remaking the right decision when
the time comes and to hear otherpeople's experience and be
comforted by that. So Iencourage you just to, to sit
back and and listen to the thegreat experiences she had. And
(01:51):
also be encouraged by hearingother people's journeys, when
sometimes the decisions are notso easy, and it gets a little
tough. And just as always tokeep it light. While I'm talking
to you about this very serioustopic. There are a lot of
shenanigans going on aroundhere. So I apologize, but I
mean, I don't know, maybe Idon't because that's what this
(02:14):
is all about. Right. Anyway,without further ado, here is my
conversation with Lesley.
Leslie (02:26):
So he basically chose me, he walked up and kind of
grabbed my hand with his mouthwhen he was like seven or eight
weeks old when I saw the letterand and that was it. I mean, I
like this is the one but he wasso stubborn. I put him in two
(02:50):
obedience classes. One was justa puppy class where I could
learn, you know, how to put aleash on and you know how to
feed him and what else to do.
And then the second one was anactual obedience class, but in
the puppy class, you know, hehe'd always play with the
(03:11):
biggest dogs he was. He was hethought he was, you know, 80
pounds or so. He was so tiny atthat time. He was probably six
or seven pounds maybe. But hewas always very, not aggressive,
but just outgoing. assertive,very assertive. And then when we
(03:34):
got to the obedience class, itwas a challenge. He was always
the worst one in the class. Ithink they passed me just to get
out of it. But yeah, we weresupposed to at the end, we were
supposed to set him up and turnaround and walk away. And I
turned around and he was gone.
(04:00):
He'd gone to the corner of thebuilding, it was playing with
the Pepe glass. It was He wascrazy. And so he he, he, I'm
trying to think what I shouldsay. Well, and in you know, my
(04:22):
brother at the same time hadabout he started out with one
Australian shepherd. And thenthat grew into about five. And
the biggest one was an 80 pounddog. Oh my goodness. And he and
Sherlock did not get along. Theywere both very aggressive. And
(04:45):
so when we would go visit myparents at the same time, they
had a chain link fence thatseparated the house from the
pasture. And those two dogs we'dhad we had to put them on either
side of the fence. and theywould just run up and down until
they were just exhausted, tooexhausted to move. And just like
(05:09):
they were gonna attack eachother, right and Sherlock,
thinking that he could fightthis humongous dog. And then I
can't remember how we actuallygot them all in the house at the
same time, but probably becausemy sister in law was a is a
disciplinarian when it comes todogs. But he always, you know,
(05:32):
he always liked being aroundother dogs whenever I adopted
other dogs, because I decidedright away since I was working,
I had he had to have a friend.
Right? I had to have another dogto keep him company. Otherwise
he would just, you know, he'd beso hyper by the time I got home
(05:53):
that I couldn't even control andso I adopted another Westie that
was around for a female. Andwhen I brought her home, I had
her in my arms and he wasjumping up, you know, trying to
reach her and I turned her looseand, and she attacked him right
(06:14):
away. And that established. Whowas the boss, you know, he went,
he always loved her, but he hada respect for her. Oh, that's
good. And I had her for about 10more years. She was 14 when she
died. And what was her? Her namewas Tonka. Okay, and I did not
name her. And now my current dogis Tunki. I adopted. Oh, he's
(06:39):
sleeping right now. He's about16.
Julie Jackson (06:49):
Oh, my goodness.
Yeah.
Leslie (06:51):
But the older I get, the smaller the dogs are that I can
handle? Just because of weight.
You know, picking up? I don'tknow how you deal with the big
giants. Well, you have help.
Julie Jackson (07:03):
You might see him there. I just saw like, No, you
can't right now because they're,they're running around. But
every now and then you might seelike a tail that buyer ahead,
it'll pop in? Well, so kind oflike you said, though, having
the two of them they wear eachother out, which is a great
thing. But like I can't. Nowwe're not good about Leash
(07:25):
training. We don't because theydo run run here and wear each
other out. We don't have to takethem on formal walks. So if we
were to take them out nowthey're just mad men on leashes.
And I could not both of them atonce. You know, like they have
now exceeded the size and theweight limit. Where unless they
(07:46):
were better trained and moreobedient if I took them out now
if they wanted to, they coulddrag me so but they're really I
mean, being in the house andthen playing and stuff. I don't
have to I don't have to liftthem are really anything so
their sizes. Okay, but yeah, ifI had to, like, evacuate the
(08:06):
house with books.
Leslie (08:08):
Well, when I got Tonka, I was in an apartment. And I was
there for about a year walking.
You know, all in the rain andcold and everything. I was like,
I gotta get a house.
Julie Jackson (08:22):
Yeah, yes. So I I've had
Leslie (08:25):
a house ever since then.
And it's probably the mainreason that I have houses
because I don't like all themaintenance but it's just
easier. You know, I have a dogdoor and I've always had a dog
door. And you know, I still walkthem some and you know, I can
walk them now. But you know, nowthere's so many loose dogs,
(08:46):
especially in our neighborhoodthat I'm kind of scared to walk
unless I had a gun or something.
Julie Jackson (08:56):
Well, yeah, yeah.
Leslie (08:59):
It was kind of dangerous.
Julie Jackson (09:01):
So one of the things that I had for running
but but I would use it in thatsituation too. And remind me
I'll send you the link. I got itoff Amazon. It looks like one of
those Maglite flashlights, butit's also a stun gun and that
when you hit the button and itdoes that crackling noise the
(09:21):
Dogs hate that so you don't haveto like I mean you obviously
don't have to use it you justhit the button and make the
crackling noise and most dogswill take off most of them don't
want to they don't want to missYeah, well there's a bunch of
them out there the one I got Ithink the brand is like Diablo
(09:42):
and the reason I went with thatone is it also has the adapter
for the cigarette lighter in thecar. So I just keep it in my car
so I have the flashlight butthen I also have you know if if
my cars you know if I broke downor and I used to when I'd run
either I didn't run I'm late atnight very much, but I ran early
(10:02):
in the morning when it was darka lot. Never by myself, but
still it was just me and likeanother woman, so I would always
carry that as my flashlight. Andthen that way we had that too,
but, but I found out becausesometimes we would have that
where we'd be out and a dogwould be loose and it'd be dark,
and then we wouldn't see theirpeople anywhere. And I just hit
the button and they would belike, Oh, I'm out of here.
Leslie (10:25):
Okay, yeah. So no, well, I have an airsoft pistol. But
I'm afraid if I take it out.
Somebody will think it's a realgun.
Julie Jackson (10:35):
Yes. Because though Yeah, they look. Yeah.
Yeah. I
Leslie (10:38):
mean, they have a red tip on it, but still. Right. You
know, from a distance. You mightnot see that. So yeah. I've been
kind of reluctant to take thatout. Yeah, but I have a broken
toe right now. So I haven't beenwalking much of anything,
anywhere.
Julie Jackson (10:57):
Well, at least you have a yard now.
Leslie (10:59):
So that's good. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And I
mean, I have houses in the dogs.
Let me live in them. Yes, likethe bed. They let me sleep in
the bed.
Julie Jackson (11:12):
I know. I laugh because I built a dog bed for my
dogs. It looks like a day bed.
And it's all cute andeverything. I was like, you
know, I was I thinking becausethey're like, well, that's
really nice. How are you goingto fit in that? Because
Leslie (11:29):
they thought You thought they would actually be in the
part you built for them. Like,that's funny. Every time I leave
the house, I let I leave Toki inmy bed and he's always when I
come back. He's always asleep inthe spot where I sleep. Wait,
yeah. Go ahead. Oh, I'm
Julie Jackson (11:52):
sorry. I was just gonna ask what kind of donkey?
Leslie (11:54):
Tonky is a chihuahua Yorkie Oh, and he weighs about
eight pounds. He used to weighabout 12. But he's had a lot of
teeth pulled. Yeah, he has ahard time eating. But he used to
be, you know, he's a chooselike, nonstop. And he I had his
(12:16):
brother, his little brotherDuke, who died about a year and
a half ago. And that's half hissize. He just got up when I said
Duke sweet, but they would fightover to us all the time. But
they had had terrible teeth. Andevery time every time I took him
(12:37):
to have a dental cleaning,they'd pull about eight or 10
teeth at a time. Oh my goodness.
So he has he has, you know, thebottom and top incisors and but
he's missing all of these in thefront. And you know, and a lot
of them on the side. One of thembroke off recently and but his I
(12:58):
don't think they really want todo a deal on him again. So he
Oh, yeah. But he's been youknow, I really love them because
they're, they don't shed.
Supposedly I'm allergic to dogs.
But you take allergy shots fordogs, cats horses.
Julie Jackson (13:25):
Well, yeah, yeah.
Cuz you had, you have like along horse history to growing up
and stuff
Leslie (13:32):
out five years or so where I was really serious with
it. But yeah, and I actuallymajored in Animal Science at
a&m, but I, I was allergic toeverything associated with
horses, just, I mean, asthma,the whole, you know, just really
bad allergies, and it just well,and then when I moved away from
(13:54):
home, it just wasn't, you know,it's a very expensive hobby. So,
Julie Jackson (13:59):
yeah, just alone.
Leslie (14:02):
Do what just having
Julie Jackson (14:03):
the space alone the land and,
Leslie (14:07):
or even boarding or, you know, whatever, feeding the
whole thing, it's expensiveenough to have dogs? Yeah. Much
less horses. You know, I stillhave horses a lot. My I had, I
think I had my first horse whenI was four or five. My dad loved
animals. And he kind of, he'dalways come home with an animal.
(14:30):
You know? Look, I bought thesefour horses in a saddle for
$500. So it was it was fun. Itwas a lot of fun. But that
Julie Jackson (14:42):
would be every kid's dream to have dad just
come home and be like, gotchapony.
Leslie (14:47):
Yeah, exactly. I think he did it for himself. But you
know, but we were the ones thatthat wrote him and my brother's
a professional. I mean, he hegot a PhD. reproductive
physiology. Oh, wow in animalscience, and he's in charge of
the horse program at a&e at WestTexas a&m. Oh my goodness, for
(15:11):
the last 2025 years or so. But,and they still have dogs latest.
My nephew just got a bordercollie puppy that he's going to
try to train. You know, in thelike you see on the videos where
they can hurt, hurt.
Julie Jackson (15:32):
Oh, yeah. That they're so smart, too. Yeah,
they're so smart.
Leslie (15:37):
I don't know how I don't know how that's going. They live
in Amarillo. So I haven't seenhim. But none of my dogs have
been trained to do anything.
They have any tricks and somethat they discovered on their
own.
Julie Jackson (15:53):
That's us that, you know, I've always said, My
child, I'm raising with the goalto be a productive member of
society to go out into the worldand hopefully leave it better
than she found it. My dogsaren't going anywhere. They
don't have any marketableskills. They don't have. They
have barely have manners, butotherwise, they're just here to
(16:15):
love on and vice versa. So,
Leslie (16:17):
exactly. Well, and I'm, you know, I'm getting at the
point where I'd like to travelsome, and it's a real hassle
with dogs. So if taki somethinghappens to taki I'm not sure. I
mean, I always want to getanother one. I mean, I would get
another one now, except I don'tknow how he would tolerate it.
(16:40):
But you know, and I see alwayssee these dogs up for adoption
on Facebook and, and otherplaces. And I just like, in
fact, my grimmer when I took himone time, she had these two
precious little chihuahuapuppies. And she said, I have
(17:01):
something I want to show you.
And I was like, no. Because, youknow, once you take care of
them, it's like a lifelongcommitment. Yeah, no matter. I
mean, they're not gonna liveforever, but they live pretty
Julie Jackson (17:18):
long lives. Yeah.
So what do you think you learnedfrom Sherlock?
Leslie (17:25):
Ah, I learned a lot of patience. In fact, my brother
told me that I was probably theonly one that could have dealt
with him because it required alot of patience to deal with
him. You know, I mean, when wewere just at home and around the
(17:45):
house, he was fine. You know,but whenever I'd take him for a
walk, or, you know, he was itwas always the aggressive thing.
And, yeah, trying to keep but heI mean, he was least trained.
That was the good thing aboutthe obedience class. And a few
times he got out, and he wasreal good about, you know, if
(18:09):
you yelled at him to see it,from, you know, cross the way or
whatever he would, you know, hewas good. Yeah. So he wouldn't
just run away. Toki would justrun away. He would just follow
his nose. But he's also deaf.
So.
Julie Jackson (18:27):
Right, right. To our girls, Lilly, and Eleanor.
They have a thing now, where,seriously, I would not believe
this if I had not witnessed it.
And I'm glad that we've hadpeople witness it besides us
now, because it sounds likewe're making it up. But if we
try to take them out now and putthem in the car and take them
(18:47):
somewhere, they have grand malseizures. It's horrifying. Yeah.
Yeah, yep. Yep. And I don't, Idon't know. So Lily, Lily's
completely blind now. And she'sbeen going blind, you know,
gradually over the years, and Ialways laugh because she's a
(19:10):
blue healer. You know, they'reherding dogs. But she's always
been scared to go outside. Andshe's comfortable going out in
the backyard here. She doesn'tget scared there. But even at
our old house, it was hard toget her out in the backyard
sometimes. And I don't know. Andso I wonder now, if maybe
something with her visionalready, like her peripheral
(19:32):
vision maybe was off orsomething that made her feel
insecure. And that's why butshe's never so she has never
liked going for walks. If I'veever had to take her out
anywhere out the front door. Shejust totally resists. Like we've
literally had to drag her likeon the hard floor slide her you
know to get her out. So she'sbut Eleanor used to like to go
(19:54):
out for walks and stuff and shewas fine. And then a couple
summers ago, we were taking themboth to the vets. And we had
Roscoe to and because Lily getso traumatized by it, Ricky took
Lily and first while I wasgetting Eleanor and Roscoe, I
opened the door and he is on thefloor of the waiting room of the
vet. And I'm trying to processwhat I'm looking at. And I
(20:18):
looked down and Lily's having agrand mal seizure. And and while
I'm trying to figure out what'shappening, I feel tugging on one
of the leashes that I'm holding.
And I looked down and Eleanor'shaving one at my feet. Wow. And
we thought it was he was in thesummer. And so we thought that
maybe it was heat induced. Andof course, we're in the vet. So
(20:41):
they come running out, and theytake care of them and get them
all cooled off and everything.
And so they you know, he thoughtthat too, that we thought it was
from the heat. And so then wewere like, Okay, we'll try again
in the fall, try to get in thefall. Soon as Lily got outside.
She started having one. So we'relike, okay, we're not going to
try with Lily anymore. Wethought it was just her. And
(21:01):
then the next time. Ricky waslike, Okay, I'm going to take
Eleanor and Roscoe didn't evenget out of the driveway, and
Eleanor started having one. Andthen she ended up having, I
think three or four more in that24 hour period. So we had to put
her on prednisone. And then wow.
(21:22):
And then finally, just like aweek or so ago, we finally found
a mobile vet. We've been tryingto find a mobile vet for
literally years, and we were outof everyone's service area, or
they weren't taking new clients.
Finally found one sweetestfather daughter, both of them
vets. And they came out and theywere but they have their little
van and the dogs go in the vanoutside. And and both of them
(21:42):
had them again, going outsideinto their van. So yeah, yeah,
it's all
Leslie (21:53):
you do. Just don't ever take them anywhere. Yeah, we
can't.
Julie Jackson (21:57):
We can't, because they have the seizures. So the
fortunately, my old vet used todo house calls, but he retired
years ago, but we he was my vetfor decades. And so you know, we
have each other cell phonenumber. So when Eleanor had the
day where she just kept havingthem, because I know in the
(22:18):
past, I've had dogs, and they'vehad him once. And he would
always say if they just haveone, I'm not going to start them
on meds. It's just if we startseeing that they're having
multiples. So when I called himwhen she kept having them, he's
like, Okay, we're gonna get onperimeter. And so he's been
doing the perimeter. And for me,thank goodness. And then now we
found these this and they wereso sweet. The new vets, they
(22:39):
were like, okay, you know, ifyou need us to start managing
their seizure meds if the othervet decides he doesn't want to
do that anymore. They were like,just call us. We're happy to and
they said, but we're not goingto do lab draws or anything like
normally we would, because we'vealready seen what happens. So
Leslie (22:55):
yeah, that's interesting, because the last
time wow, I'm trying to thinkwhen it was, I guess like, last
August or so. Whenever I tookhim to get his shots last year,
he, we got in the car and it washot. We got in the car
afterwards. And I starteddriving away. I mean, I was
(23:20):
already like halfway home. Andhe was just passed like he
wouldn't pass down. He was stillconscious that he was lying on
his side and he couldn't get up.
And so I called an emergency vetand told him I was on the way
because I knew that that I hadbeen to win. Yeah. Plus, they
would have been closed by me.
(23:42):
And I think right. So halfway tothe emergency vet. He just
perked up and you know, wantedout of the car. And I don't
know, I still don't. And ithappened one other time. But it
was inside the house where hewas running outside. And I don't
know if he has some kind ofheart condition or if it was a
(24:06):
Caesar. Yeah, Duke ended uphaving a heart condition. And
that's why he died. Oh, and soI'm wondering if Toki have
something similar, but I'm notgonna go through all the
expensive cardiology workup, youknow?
Julie Jackson (24:25):
Well, and I hate to put them to trauma, too. You
know, that's, especially whenthey're older. A lot of times
that's just traumatic for them.
Well,
Leslie (24:34):
I wondered if, you know, we had been at the vet for about
30 or 45 minutes, probably andthey drew blood and, you know,
he just gets so worked up whenwe go you know, in the waiting
room. I've been waiting in theroom to get the shots and
everything so I thought youknow, maybe it was just stress
(24:57):
or just
Julie Jackson (24:58):
I wouldn't be surprised I almost wonder. Yeah,
I almost kind of wonder if, ifthe first one that the girls had
when they both had it, if itwasn't something like the heat
and the stress and everything,but now it's one of those things
where because it happened once.
Yeah, that now every time they,like automatically think it's
(25:20):
going to happen again and getworked up to the point of it
happening. You know, I don'tknow, I don't know, it's
Leslie (25:28):
sometimes talking, you know, if I come home, he's all
excited. And he'll be runningback and forth. And I'm, like,
calm down. I don't want you to,I don't want you to fall over.
Whatever that was, you know,yes. Coming down, but I don't
know, they these things crop up.
Yeah. And, you know, I did gothrough a lot of diagnostic
(25:50):
stuff at one time with one of mydogs and, you know, they die
anyway. So, yes, and it may justtake longer, but, you know, it
depends. It depends on how oldthey are, I guess. And
Julie Jackson (26:10):
well, and their quality of life too. And, you
know, a lot of times they theywon't let on. Like, even if they
are miserable, they doeverything they can just to be
there with you. And sometimesyou think, I guess one thing
that sounds kind of awful untilyou've been through it several
times. But I realized now,especially when it comes time
(26:32):
when you know, you see themdeclining, I would always rather
be one day early than one daylate. When if it's time for them
to go, you know, because youdon't ever want to see them
suffering. And sometimes I thinkthey probably do suffer just so
they can stay with us. Before werealize that they're suffering.
Leslie (26:54):
Yeah. So well, and now I don't know if it's because of,
you know, I think people haveyou know, people, I just I don't
know, if they're giving up dogsbecause of the pandemic. They
can't afford them. I don't know.
But when I took Duke in to beeuthanized, I had been to the
(27:16):
same clinic. It was kind of anemergency clinic. And he was he
was just emaciated. He wouldn'teat for like two or three days.
And I just knew it was timecourse when you get to the vet's
office and they perked up. Andthey were asking me well, like,
(27:36):
why are you putting him down nowacid because he hasn't eaten. He
won't eat. He's, you know, Isaid to you, I brought him here
a month ago. And we put him onmeds, it's been impossible to
cram the meds down his throat.
Yeah, hit him to take him. Youknow, it's like they had the
(27:58):
records, they knew what waswrong with him. And they were
still questioning my motives fortrying to euthanize him. And I
mean, I stayed in the room andsobbed for like 30 minutes or an
hour when they did it. But theyacted like, you know, I was just
trying to get rid of him. Andhere's this, you know, 15 year
(28:22):
old dog that had a heart problemand hadn't been eating when take
his meds and you know, it wascrazy.
Julie Jackson (28:32):
I'm so sorry that you went through that cuz I
know, with Roscoe, you know, we,there was a period where we he
had vestibular disorder, whichis kind of like vertigo for
dogs. And sometimes it can justcome on because of age, and you
give him a week or two, and thenit goes away. It's just
idiopathic, and they're fine.
And then it may happen againlater. But then sometimes it's
(28:54):
because like, maybe, at first wethought with him, it might also
be an ear infection. So we weretreating him, you know, and that
that could mess up their, youknow, his equilibrium. But it
can also be something like abrain tumor. And so with him,
you know, we went for a coupleof weeks, and it got worse. It
wasn't getting worse, but itwasn't getting better. And if it
(29:17):
had been idiopathic, it shouldhave started to turn around by
then. And it wasn't and, andthen so we had to make that
appointment. And we called onFriday morning and said we'd
been to the vet multiple timesover the the week leading up to
it. And we called and made theappointment. They couldn't get a
(29:39):
central like for 15 thatafternoon. So we had that day
with him. And he started havingseizures. And so that for me was
kind of really the confirmationthat we're doing the right
thing, but I hate that you wentthrough that because when we got
there, I still kept thinking amI do Doing the right thing? Am I
(29:59):
doing the right thing? And ifthey hadn't been reassuring me,
I think I would have that wouldhave been very, very hard to,
you know, to have someone not
Leslie (30:10):
be me. So I had not been through it before, five or six
other times, I would haveprobably come back home with him
and just waited, you know, andlet him get worse. You know,
because I just felt kind ofguilty. Now, they actually had a
nice room where they could doactual yes, they had it set up
(30:35):
very nice.
Julie Jackson (30:37):
I'm so sorry that you went through that because I
know with Roscoe, you know, we,there was a period where we, he
had vestibular disorder, whichis kind of like vertigo for
dogs. And sometimes it can justcome on because of age, and you
give him a week or two, and thenit goes away. It's just
idiopathic, and they're fine.
And then it may happen againlater. But then sometimes it's
(30:59):
because like, maybe, at first wethought with him, it might also
be an ear infection. So we weretreating him, you know, and that
that could mess up their, youknow, his equilibrium. But it
can also be something like abrain tumor. And so with him,
you know, we we went for acouple of weeks, and it got
worse, it wasn't getting worse,but it wasn't getting better.
(31:21):
And if it had been idiopathic,it should have started to turn
around by then. And it wasn'tand, and then so we had to make
that appointment. And we calledon Friday morning and said we'd
been to the vet multiple timesover the the week leading up to
it. And we called and made theappointment. They couldn't get
(31:43):
in till like 415 that afternoon.
So we had that day with him. Andhe started having seizures. And
so that for me was kind ofreally the confirmation that
we're doing the right thing. ButI hate that you went through
that. Because when we got there,I still kept thinking, Am I
(32:04):
doing the right thing? Am Idoing the right thing? And if
they hadn't been reassuring me,I think I would have that would
have been very, very hard to youknow, to have someone not be
Yeah,
Leslie (32:15):
I had not been through it before five or six other
times, I would have probablycome back home with him and just
waited, you know, and let himget worse. You know, because I
felt kind of guilty. Now theyactually had a nice room where
they could do actual yes, theyhad it set up very nice.
Julie Jackson (32:41):
Due to technical issues, our conversation ended
early. But I'm no less gratefulto Lesley for sharing such a
really important and relevantstory. And I thank you so much
for for sticking around andlistening to it. Because I think
that it's important that wehonor every part of our journey
with our dogs and and neverforget what a privilege it is to
(33:04):
be with them from start all theway to finish. So once again, as
always, I'm so grateful for yourtime. Thank you so much for
joining me today. I know thatyou are busy, and I really
appreciate that you chose tospend some of your time with me.
So let's do a little bit ofbookkeeping before we head out.
If you enjoy this and you wouldlike to receive the episodes
(33:28):
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And that way every time anepisode drops, it'll show up for
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don't have to think about it.
Please go visit the website.
It's really cute. It's got puppypictures. Also, I've got a free
gift for you over there if youwill go check it out. And if you
would like to message me if youhave any suggestions specific
(33:51):
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(34:15):
to put episodes on YouTube aswell. Sometimes the episodes are
recorded via zoom. And sothere's video, a lot of times
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(34:38):
podcast that would be fantastic.
I would be really grateful. Andonce again, if you want to help
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Some people have gotten on thephone and done a chat with me so
we can do whatever you are mostcomfortable with finally do not
(35:00):
forget that you are as great asyour dog thinks you are and go
smooth chipping Thanks y'all
Hey, welcome to happy tales of happy tales, the
podcast where you'll hearstories of the way pups have
touched our hearts and ourlives. So for the next few
minutes, let everything else goand just listen and smile. I'm
your host, Julie JacksonFriends, today I share a
(00:23):
conversation with you that I hadwith my dear friend Leslie. Like
many wonderful people in mylife, we met through one avenue
and bonded through dogs. Shealso just has a really long
family heritage of all kinds of,of animal husbandry in her life.
(00:43):
So I just encourage you to hearabout her spunky, stubborn
little Sherlock. But I also wantto point out at the end of our
conversation, we addressed someof the the less glamorous
privileges of having a frostyface and having an old dog, we
(01:04):
we talked about just some of thedecisions that when you're when
you spend many years being lovedby dog, you have the privilege
of making, even though they'rehard, and some of those end of
life decisions and helping themcross the Rainbow Bridge. So I
encourage you to listen. Andeven though sometimes it's a sad
(01:26):
topic, it's also a very sweettopic. And it's also I think,
important to know that you'remaking the right decision when
the time comes and to hear otherpeople's experience and be
comforted by that. So Iencourage you just to, to sit
back and and listen to the thegreat experiences she had. And
(01:51):
also be encouraged by hearingother people's journeys, when
sometimes the decisions are notso easy, and it gets a little
tough. And just as always tokeep it light. While I'm talking
to you about this very serioustopic. There are a lot of
shenanigans going on aroundhere. So I apologize, but I
mean, I don't know, maybe Idon't because that's what this
(02:14):
is all about. Right. Anyway,without further ado, here is my
conversation with Lesley.
Leslie (02:26):
So he basically chose me, he walked up and kind of
grabbed my hand with his mouthwhen he was like seven or eight
weeks old when I saw the letterand and that was it. I mean, I
like this is the one but he wasso stubborn. I put him in two
(02:50):
obedience classes. One was justa puppy class where I could
learn, you know, how to put aleash on and you know how to
feed him and what else to do.
And then the second one was anactual obedience class, but in
the puppy class, you know, hehe'd always play with the
(03:11):
biggest dogs he was. He was hethought he was, you know, 80
pounds or so. He was so tiny atthat time. He was probably six
or seven pounds maybe. But hewas always very, not aggressive,
but just outgoing. assertive,very assertive. And then when we
(03:34):
got to the obedience class, itwas a challenge. He was always
the worst one in the class. Ithink they passed me just to get
out of it. But yeah, we weresupposed to at the end, we were
supposed to set him up and turnaround and walk away. And I
turned around and he was gone.
(04:00):
He'd gone to the corner of thebuilding, it was playing with
the Pepe glass. It was He wascrazy. And so he he, he, I'm
trying to think what I shouldsay. Well, and in you know, my
(04:22):
brother at the same time hadabout he started out with one
Australian shepherd. And thenthat grew into about five. And
the biggest one was an 80 pounddog. Oh my goodness. And he and
Sherlock did not get along. Theywere both very aggressive. And
(04:45):
so when we would go visit myparents at the same time, they
had a chain link fence thatseparated the house from the
pasture. And those two dogs we'dhad we had to put them on either
side of the fence. and theywould just run up and down until
they were just exhausted, tooexhausted to move. And just like
(05:09):
they were gonna attack eachother, right and Sherlock,
thinking that he could fightthis humongous dog. And then I
can't remember how we actuallygot them all in the house at the
same time, but probably becausemy sister in law was a is a
disciplinarian when it comes todogs. But he always, you know,
(05:32):
he always liked being aroundother dogs whenever I adopted
other dogs, because I decidedright away since I was working,
I had he had to have a friend.
Right? I had to have another dogto keep him company. Otherwise
he would just, you know, he'd beso hyper by the time I got home
(05:53):
that I couldn't even control andso I adopted another Westie that
was around for a female. Andwhen I brought her home, I had
her in my arms and he wasjumping up, you know, trying to
reach her and I turned her looseand, and she attacked him right
(06:14):
away. And that established. Whowas the boss, you know, he went,
he always loved her, but he hada respect for her. Oh, that's
good. And I had her for about 10more years. She was 14 when she
died. And what was her? Her namewas Tonka. Okay, and I did not
name her. And now my current dogis Tunki. I adopted. Oh, he's
(06:39):
sleeping right now. He's about16.
Julie Jackson (06:49):
Oh, my goodness.
Yeah.
Leslie (06:51):
But the older I get, the smaller the dogs are that I can
handle? Just because of weight.
You know, picking up? I don'tknow how you deal with the big
giants. Well, you have help.
Julie Jackson (07:03):
You might see him there. I just saw like, No, you
can't right now because they're,they're running around. But
every now and then you might seelike a tail that buyer ahead,
it'll pop in? Well, so kind oflike you said, though, having
the two of them they wear eachother out, which is a great
thing. But like I can't. Nowwe're not good about Leash
(07:25):
training. We don't because theydo run run here and wear each
other out. We don't have to takethem on formal walks. So if we
were to take them out nowthey're just mad men on leashes.
And I could not both of them atonce. You know, like they have
now exceeded the size and theweight limit. Where unless they
(07:46):
were better trained and moreobedient if I took them out now
if they wanted to, they coulddrag me so but they're really I
mean, being in the house andthen playing and stuff. I don't
have to I don't have to liftthem are really anything so
their sizes. Okay, but yeah, ifI had to, like, evacuate the
(08:06):
house with books.
Leslie (08:08):
Well, when I got Tonka, I was in an apartment. And I was
there for about a year walking.
You know, all in the rain andcold and everything. I was like,
I gotta get a house.
Julie Jackson (08:22):
Yeah, yes. So I I've had
Leslie (08:25):
a house ever since then.
And it's probably the mainreason that I have houses
because I don't like all themaintenance but it's just
easier. You know, I have a dogdoor and I've always had a dog
door. And you know, I still walkthem some and you know, I can
walk them now. But you know, nowthere's so many loose dogs,
(08:46):
especially in our neighborhoodthat I'm kind of scared to walk
unless I had a gun or something.
Julie Jackson (08:56):
Well, yeah, yeah.
Leslie (08:59):
It was kind of dangerous.
Julie Jackson (09:01):
So one of the things that I had for running
but but I would use it in thatsituation too. And remind me
I'll send you the link. I got itoff Amazon. It looks like one of
those Maglite flashlights, butit's also a stun gun and that
when you hit the button and itdoes that crackling noise the
(09:21):
Dogs hate that so you don't haveto like I mean you obviously
don't have to use it you justhit the button and make the
crackling noise and most dogswill take off most of them don't
want to they don't want to missYeah, well there's a bunch of
them out there the one I got Ithink the brand is like Diablo
(09:42):
and the reason I went with thatone is it also has the adapter
for the cigarette lighter in thecar. So I just keep it in my car
so I have the flashlight butthen I also have you know if if
my cars you know if I broke downor and I used to when I'd run
either I didn't run I'm late atnight very much, but I ran early
(10:02):
in the morning when it was darka lot. Never by myself, but
still it was just me and likeanother woman, so I would always
carry that as my flashlight. Andthen that way we had that too,
but, but I found out becausesometimes we would have that
where we'd be out and a dogwould be loose and it'd be dark,
and then we wouldn't see theirpeople anywhere. And I just hit
the button and they would belike, Oh, I'm out of here.
Leslie (10:25):
Okay, yeah. So no, well, I have an airsoft pistol. But
I'm afraid if I take it out.
Somebody will think it's a realgun.
Julie Jackson (10:35):
Yes. Because though Yeah, they look. Yeah.
Yeah. I
Leslie (10:38):
mean, they have a red tip on it, but still. Right. You
know, from a distance. You mightnot see that. So yeah. I've been
kind of reluctant to take thatout. Yeah, but I have a broken
toe right now. So I haven't beenwalking much of anything,
anywhere.
Julie Jackson (10:57):
Well, at least you have a yard now.
Leslie (10:59):
So that's good. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And I
mean, I have houses in the dogs.
Let me live in them. Yes, likethe bed. They let me sleep in
the bed.
Julie Jackson (11:12):
I know. I laugh because I built a dog bed for my
dogs. It looks like a day bed.
And it's all cute andeverything. I was like, you
know, I was I thinking becausethey're like, well, that's
really nice. How are you goingto fit in that? Because
Leslie (11:29):
they thought You thought they would actually be in the
part you built for them. Like,that's funny. Every time I leave
the house, I let I leave Toki inmy bed and he's always when I
come back. He's always asleep inthe spot where I sleep. Wait,
yeah. Go ahead. Oh, I'm
Julie Jackson (11:52):
sorry. I was just gonna ask what kind of donkey?
Leslie (11:54):
Tonky is a chihuahua Yorkie Oh, and he weighs about
eight pounds. He used to weighabout 12. But he's had a lot of
teeth pulled. Yeah, he has ahard time eating. But he used to
be, you know, he's a chooselike, nonstop. And he I had his
(12:16):
brother, his little brotherDuke, who died about a year and
a half ago. And that's half hissize. He just got up when I said
Duke sweet, but they would fightover to us all the time. But
they had had terrible teeth. Andevery time every time I took him
(12:37):
to have a dental cleaning,they'd pull about eight or 10
teeth at a time. Oh my goodness.
So he has he has, you know, thebottom and top incisors and but
he's missing all of these in thefront. And you know, and a lot
of them on the side. One of thembroke off recently and but his I
(12:58):
don't think they really want todo a deal on him again. So he
Oh, yeah. But he's been youknow, I really love them because
they're, they don't shed.
Supposedly I'm allergic to dogs.
But you take allergy shots fordogs, cats horses.
Julie Jackson (13:25):
Well, yeah, yeah.
Cuz you had, you have like along horse history to growing up
and stuff
Leslie (13:32):
out five years or so where I was really serious with
it. But yeah, and I actuallymajored in Animal Science at
a&m, but I, I was allergic toeverything associated with
horses, just, I mean, asthma,the whole, you know, just really
bad allergies, and it just well,and then when I moved away from
(13:54):
home, it just wasn't, you know,it's a very expensive hobby. So,
Julie Jackson (13:59):
yeah, just alone.
Leslie (14:02):
Do what just having
Julie Jackson (14:03):
the space alone the land and,
Leslie (14:07):
or even boarding or, you know, whatever, feeding the
whole thing, it's expensiveenough to have dogs? Yeah. Much
less horses. You know, I stillhave horses a lot. My I had, I
think I had my first horse whenI was four or five. My dad loved
animals. And he kind of, he'dalways come home with an animal.
(14:30):
You know? Look, I bought thesefour horses in a saddle for
$500. So it was it was fun. Itwas a lot of fun. But that
Julie Jackson (14:42):
would be every kid's dream to have dad just
come home and be like, gotchapony.
Leslie (14:47):
Yeah, exactly. I think he did it for himself. But you
know, but we were the ones thatthat wrote him and my brother's
a professional. I mean, he hegot a PhD. reproductive
physiology. Oh, wow in animalscience, and he's in charge of
the horse program at a&e at WestTexas a&m. Oh my goodness, for
(15:11):
the last 2025 years or so. But,and they still have dogs latest.
My nephew just got a bordercollie puppy that he's going to
try to train. You know, in thelike you see on the videos where
they can hurt, hurt.
Julie Jackson (15:32):
Oh, yeah. That they're so smart, too. Yeah,
they're so smart.
Leslie (15:37):
I don't know how I don't know how that's going. They live
in Amarillo. So I haven't seenhim. But none of my dogs have
been trained to do anything.
They have any tricks and somethat they discovered on their
own.
Julie Jackson (15:53):
That's us that, you know, I've always said, My
child, I'm raising with the goalto be a productive member of
society to go out into the worldand hopefully leave it better
than she found it. My dogsaren't going anywhere. They
don't have any marketableskills. They don't have. They
have barely have manners, butotherwise, they're just here to
(16:15):
love on and vice versa. So,
Leslie (16:17):
exactly. Well, and I'm, you know, I'm getting at the
point where I'd like to travelsome, and it's a real hassle
with dogs. So if taki somethinghappens to taki I'm not sure. I
mean, I always want to getanother one. I mean, I would get
another one now, except I don'tknow how he would tolerate it.
(16:40):
But you know, and I see alwayssee these dogs up for adoption
on Facebook and, and otherplaces. And I just like, in
fact, my grimmer when I took himone time, she had these two
precious little chihuahuapuppies. And she said, I have
(17:01):
something I want to show you.
And I was like, no. Because, youknow, once you take care of
them, it's like a lifelongcommitment. Yeah, no matter. I
mean, they're not gonna liveforever, but they live pretty
Julie Jackson (17:18):
long lives. Yeah.
So what do you think you learnedfrom Sherlock?
Leslie (17:25):
Ah, I learned a lot of patience. In fact, my brother
told me that I was probably theonly one that could have dealt
with him because it required alot of patience to deal with
him. You know, I mean, when wewere just at home and around the
(17:45):
house, he was fine. You know,but whenever I'd take him for a
walk, or, you know, he was itwas always the aggressive thing.
And, yeah, trying to keep but heI mean, he was least trained.
That was the good thing aboutthe obedience class. And a few
times he got out, and he wasreal good about, you know, if
(18:09):
you yelled at him to see it,from, you know, cross the way or
whatever he would, you know, hewas good. Yeah. So he wouldn't
just run away. Toki would justrun away. He would just follow
his nose. But he's also deaf.
So.
Julie Jackson (18:27):
Right, right. To our girls, Lilly, and Eleanor.
They have a thing now, where,seriously, I would not believe
this if I had not witnessed it.
And I'm glad that we've hadpeople witness it besides us
now, because it sounds likewe're making it up. But if we
try to take them out now and putthem in the car and take them
(18:47):
somewhere, they have grand malseizures. It's horrifying. Yeah.
Yeah, yep. Yep. And I don't, Idon't know. So Lily, Lily's
completely blind now. And she'sbeen going blind, you know,
gradually over the years, and Ialways laugh because she's a
(19:10):
blue healer. You know, they'reherding dogs. But she's always
been scared to go outside. Andshe's comfortable going out in
the backyard here. She doesn'tget scared there. But even at
our old house, it was hard toget her out in the backyard
sometimes. And I don't know. Andso I wonder now, if maybe
something with her visionalready, like her peripheral
(19:32):
vision maybe was off orsomething that made her feel
insecure. And that's why butshe's never so she has never
liked going for walks. If I'veever had to take her out
anywhere out the front door. Shejust totally resists. Like we've
literally had to drag her likeon the hard floor slide her you
know to get her out. So she'sbut Eleanor used to like to go
(19:54):
out for walks and stuff and shewas fine. And then a couple
summers ago, we were taking themboth to the vets. And we had
Roscoe to and because Lily getso traumatized by it, Ricky took
Lily and first while I wasgetting Eleanor and Roscoe, I
opened the door and he is on thefloor of the waiting room of the
vet. And I'm trying to processwhat I'm looking at. And I
(20:18):
looked down and Lily's having agrand mal seizure. And and while
I'm trying to figure out what'shappening, I feel tugging on one
of the leashes that I'm holding.
And I looked down and Eleanor'shaving one at my feet. Wow. And
we thought it was he was in thesummer. And so we thought that
maybe it was heat induced. Andof course, we're in the vet. So
(20:41):
they come running out, and theytake care of them and get them
all cooled off and everything.
And so they you know, he thoughtthat too, that we thought it was
from the heat. And so then wewere like, Okay, we'll try again
in the fall, try to get in thefall. Soon as Lily got outside.
She started having one. So we'relike, okay, we're not going to
try with Lily anymore. Wethought it was just her. And
(21:01):
then the next time. Ricky waslike, Okay, I'm going to take
Eleanor and Roscoe didn't evenget out of the driveway, and
Eleanor started having one. Andthen she ended up having, I
think three or four more in that24 hour period. So we had to put
her on prednisone. And then wow.
(21:22):
And then finally, just like aweek or so ago, we finally found
a mobile vet. We've been tryingto find a mobile vet for
literally years, and we were outof everyone's service area, or
they weren't taking new clients.
Finally found one sweetestfather daughter, both of them
vets. And they came out and theywere but they have their little
van and the dogs go in the vanoutside. And and both of them
(21:42):
had them again, going outsideinto their van. So yeah, yeah,
it's all
Leslie (21:53):
you do. Just don't ever take them anywhere. Yeah, we
can't.
Julie Jackson (21:57):
We can't, because they have the seizures. So the
fortunately, my old vet used todo house calls, but he retired
years ago, but we he was my vetfor decades. And so you know, we
have each other cell phonenumber. So when Eleanor had the
day where she just kept havingthem, because I know in the
(22:18):
past, I've had dogs, and they'vehad him once. And he would
always say if they just haveone, I'm not going to start them
on meds. It's just if we startseeing that they're having
multiples. So when I called himwhen she kept having them, he's
like, Okay, we're gonna get onperimeter. And so he's been
doing the perimeter. And for me,thank goodness. And then now we
found these this and they wereso sweet. The new vets, they
(22:39):
were like, okay, you know, ifyou need us to start managing
their seizure meds if the othervet decides he doesn't want to
do that anymore. They were like,just call us. We're happy to and
they said, but we're not goingto do lab draws or anything like
normally we would, because we'vealready seen what happens. So
Leslie (22:55):
yeah, that's interesting, because the last
time wow, I'm trying to thinkwhen it was, I guess like, last
August or so. Whenever I tookhim to get his shots last year,
he, we got in the car and it washot. We got in the car
afterwards. And I starteddriving away. I mean, I was
(23:20):
already like halfway home. Andhe was just passed like he
wouldn't pass down. He was stillconscious that he was lying on
his side and he couldn't get up.
And so I called an emergency vetand told him I was on the way
because I knew that that I hadbeen to win. Yeah. Plus, they
would have been closed by me.
(23:42):
And I think right. So halfway tothe emergency vet. He just
perked up and you know, wantedout of the car. And I don't
know, I still don't. And ithappened one other time. But it
was inside the house where hewas running outside. And I don't
know if he has some kind ofheart condition or if it was a
(24:06):
Caesar. Yeah, Duke ended uphaving a heart condition. And
that's why he died. Oh, and soI'm wondering if Toki have
something similar, but I'm notgonna go through all the
expensive cardiology workup, youknow?
Julie Jackson (24:25):
Well, and I hate to put them to trauma, too. You
know, that's, especially whenthey're older. A lot of times
that's just traumatic for them.
Well,
Leslie (24:34):
I wondered if, you know, we had been at the vet for about
30 or 45 minutes, probably andthey drew blood and, you know,
he just gets so worked up whenwe go you know, in the waiting
room. I've been waiting in theroom to get the shots and
everything so I thought youknow, maybe it was just stress
(24:57):
or just
Julie Jackson (24:58):
I wouldn't be surprised I almost wonder. Yeah,
I almost kind of wonder if, ifthe first one that the girls had
when they both had it, if itwasn't something like the heat
and the stress and everything,but now it's one of those things
where because it happened once.
Yeah, that now every time they,like automatically think it's
(25:20):
going to happen again and getworked up to the point of it
happening. You know, I don'tknow, I don't know, it's
Leslie (25:28):
sometimes talking, you know, if I come home, he's all
excited. And he'll be runningback and forth. And I'm, like,
calm down. I don't want you to,I don't want you to fall over.
Whatever that was, you know,yes. Coming down, but I don't
know, they these things crop up.
Yeah. And, you know, I did gothrough a lot of diagnostic
(25:50):
stuff at one time with one of mydogs and, you know, they die
anyway. So, yes, and it may justtake longer, but, you know, it
depends. It depends on how oldthey are, I guess. And
Julie Jackson (26:10):
well, and their quality of life too. And, you
know, a lot of times they theywon't let on. Like, even if they
are miserable, they doeverything they can just to be
there with you. And sometimesyou think, I guess one thing
that sounds kind of awful untilyou've been through it several
times. But I realized now,especially when it comes time
(26:32):
when you know, you see themdeclining, I would always rather
be one day early than one daylate. When if it's time for them
to go, you know, because youdon't ever want to see them
suffering. And sometimes I thinkthey probably do suffer just so
they can stay with us. Before werealize that they're suffering.
Leslie (26:54):
Yeah. So well, and now I don't know if it's because of,
you know, I think people haveyou know, people, I just I don't
know, if they're giving up dogsbecause of the pandemic. They
can't afford them. I don't know.
But when I took Duke in to beeuthanized, I had been to the
(27:16):
same clinic. It was kind of anemergency clinic. And he was he
was just emaciated. He wouldn'teat for like two or three days.
And I just knew it was timecourse when you get to the vet's
office and they perked up. Andthey were asking me well, like,
(27:36):
why are you putting him down nowacid because he hasn't eaten. He
won't eat. He's, you know, Isaid to you, I brought him here
a month ago. And we put him onmeds, it's been impossible to
cram the meds down his throat.
Yeah, hit him to take him. Youknow, it's like they had the
(27:58):
records, they knew what waswrong with him. And they were
still questioning my motives fortrying to euthanize him. And I
mean, I stayed in the room andsobbed for like 30 minutes or an
hour when they did it. But theyacted like, you know, I was just
trying to get rid of him. Andhere's this, you know, 15 year
(28:22):
old dog that had a heart problemand hadn't been eating when take
his meds and you know, it wascrazy.
Julie Jackson (28:32):
I'm so sorry that you went through that cuz I
know, with Roscoe, you know, we,there was a period where we he
had vestibular disorder, whichis kind of like vertigo for
dogs. And sometimes it can justcome on because of age, and you
give him a week or two, and thenit goes away. It's just
idiopathic, and they're fine.
And then it may happen againlater. But then sometimes it's
(28:54):
because like, maybe, at first wethought with him, it might also
be an ear infection. So we weretreating him, you know, and that
that could mess up their, youknow, his equilibrium. But it
can also be something like abrain tumor. And so with him,
you know, we went for a coupleof weeks, and it got worse. It
wasn't getting worse, but itwasn't getting better. And if it
(29:17):
had been idiopathic, it shouldhave started to turn around by
then. And it wasn't and, andthen so we had to make that
appointment. And we called onFriday morning and said we'd
been to the vet multiple timesover the the week leading up to
it. And we called and made theappointment. They couldn't get a
(29:39):
central like for 15 thatafternoon. So we had that day
with him. And he started havingseizures. And so that for me was
kind of really the confirmationthat we're doing the right
thing, but I hate that you wentthrough that because when we got
there, I still kept thinking amI do Doing the right thing? Am I
(29:59):
doing the right thing? And ifthey hadn't been reassuring me,
I think I would have that wouldhave been very, very hard to,
you know, to have someone not
Leslie (30:10):
be me. So I had not been through it before, five or six
other times, I would haveprobably come back home with him
and just waited, you know, andlet him get worse. You know,
because I just felt kind ofguilty. Now, they actually had a
nice room where they could doactual yes, they had it set up
(30:35):
very nice.
Julie Jackson (30:37):
I'm so sorry that you went through that because I
know with Roscoe, you know, we,there was a period where we, he
had vestibular disorder, whichis kind of like vertigo for
dogs. And sometimes it can justcome on because of age, and you
give him a week or two, and thenit goes away. It's just
idiopathic, and they're fine.
And then it may happen againlater. But then sometimes it's
(30:59):
because like, maybe, at first wethought with him, it might also
be an ear infection. So we weretreating him, you know, and that
that could mess up their, youknow, his equilibrium. But it
can also be something like abrain tumor. And so with him,
you know, we we went for acouple of weeks, and it got
worse, it wasn't getting worse,but it wasn't getting better.
(31:21):
And if it had been idiopathic,it should have started to turn
around by then. And it wasn'tand, and then so we had to make
that appointment. And we calledon Friday morning and said we'd
been to the vet multiple timesover the the week leading up to
it. And we called and made theappointment. They couldn't get
(31:43):
in till like 415 that afternoon.
So we had that day with him. Andhe started having seizures. And
so that for me was kind ofreally the confirmation that
we're doing the right thing. ButI hate that you went through
that. Because when we got there,I still kept thinking, Am I
(32:04):
doing the right thing? Am Idoing the right thing? And if
they hadn't been reassuring me,I think I would have that would
have been very, very hard to youknow, to have someone not be
Yeah,
Leslie (32:15):
I had not been through it before five or six other
times, I would have probablycome back home with him and just
waited, you know, and let himget worse. You know, because I
felt kind of guilty. Now theyactually had a nice room where
they could do actual yes, theyhad it set up very nice.
Julie Jackson (32:41):
Due to technical issues, our conversation ended
early. But I'm no less gratefulto Lesley for sharing such a
really important and relevantstory. And I thank you so much
for for sticking around andlistening to it. Because I think
that it's important that wehonor every part of our journey
with our dogs and and neverforget what a privilege it is to
(33:04):
be with them from start all theway to finish. So once again, as
always, I'm so grateful for yourtime. Thank you so much for
joining me today. I know thatyou are busy, and I really
appreciate that you chose tospend some of your time with me.
So let's do a little bit ofbookkeeping before we head out.
If you enjoy this and you wouldlike to receive the episodes
(33:28):
automatically without having toseek them out, then in your pod
catcher, follow or subscribe.
And that way every time anepisode drops, it'll show up for
you and you'll know that it'sthere makes it super easy. You
don't have to think about it.
Please go visit the website.
It's really cute. It's got puppypictures. Also, I've got a free
gift for you over there if youwill go check it out. And if you
would like to message me if youhave any suggestions specific
(33:51):
pup stories you want to hear. Oreven better. If you want to
share a story, you can messageme right there from the website.
That's the best way to get to mefor that. Check us out on all
the different socials Facebook,Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn,
all of them. That's where you'llsee pictures of the pups that we
talk about each week. Also, justother fun pup things. I'm going
(34:15):
to put episodes on YouTube aswell. Sometimes the episodes are
recorded via zoom. And sothere's video, a lot of times
it's just us talking but everynow and then there are some fun
cameos from puppies are theirshenanigans in the background.
And you can catch all that onYouTube. If you want to help me
out if you would leave apositive review and share the
(34:38):
podcast that would be fantastic.
I would be really grateful. Andonce again, if you want to help
me out, I would love to shareyour story. So please hit me up
and let's schedule a time thatwe can talk. Some people have
shared their stories in writing.
Some people have gotten on thephone and done a chat with me so
we can do whatever you are mostcomfortable with finally do not
(35:00):
forget that you are as great asyour dog thinks you are and go
smooth chipping Thanks y'all
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