Kody Bear

Joyce and Kody Bear

This is a story about a dog that no one wanted... After losing my last dog (a rottweiler), I made a statement that I did not want to go throught the heart break of losing another dog. My husband decided he wanted to try a different breed and contacted a Chesapeake Bay Retreiver Breeder and went to see and purchase a female, I did not go. One the day he was to pick up the dog, he asked me to come alone for the ride. When we finally got there, the breeder had all the dogs marked for the new owners. One dog was not marked, a male. When I asked about hime, I found out that he was returned for different problems. This was the breeders last litter, he was having health problems and decided it would be best that he stopped breeding. As soon as I held the male I was hooked. I had to have him. He had a hernia, bow-leged and his rear joints seem to pop in and out of place. So off we went with two puppies, brother and sister. He looked like a big fat kodak baby bear and that is where his name came from. Over the next year he grew-up and played like any normal dog. One evening Kody and I where in the basement watching tv, when he fell to the ground and started to shake. He bit his tongue and peed on himself and I screamed for my family to come because I thought he was going to die! After a trip to the vet, we were informed that he had a seizer and that it happens to dogs. This was my first time experiencing a seizer and I was never so scared in my life. But Kody can out of it witha tail wag, a happy face and a kissey for everyone. Over the next couple years the seizers came more frequency and longer and now he was on a strick diet, medicine and exercise. No matter what happened in Kody's life he always had a tail wag, a smile and a kiss. He followed me everywhere and I took him everywhere I could. He never cried out in pain when he had a seizer, fell or when the vet had to run different test. Over the summer in 2009, he had a major seizer and had trouble coming out of it, after spending the night in the Animal Hospital he had trouble walking and I believe that this was the beginning of his down-fall. But on November 2009, he had 9 seizers inless then 2 hours and cried out in pain. We took him it the vet but after doing x-rays we were told that his heart was enlarged, kidney and liver were in failure and it was time to say good-bye to my best buddy. But, with all he went through he still wagged his tail, smiles and gave me a kissy. I just wish I can live my life like him. To meet everyone with a smile, happiness and caring. This has been a very hard thing for me to write. I have missed him everyday, but have to remember that he gave me five wonderful years of happines and joy.