The Story of Cubby, the beautiful Samoyed

I got a letter today about this dog, Cubby, it is featured below. It is quite the story! Please give it a read. Ps: Happy Birthday Bob!

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Hi Cara,
Thanks for posting Kodiak - he looks great! I have another one I want to share with you. His name was Cubby and he had an awesome soul and he sucked me right in from the momment I met him. About five years ago a co-worker came to my office and noticed all the pictures I had of my Bear (my first Samoyed) and asked a few questions about him and how I came to be owned by him and I explained how we had rescued him 6 years earlier from a crooked breeder who left him for dead tied up in his back yard (I'll tell you Bear's story at another time). Anyway she told me a friend of her mother's was keeping a dog, who looked allot like Bear, in her garage she found wandering the neighborhood. Only problem was he looked malnourished, he was losing most of his hair, he had a noticeable limp in his hind quarters and he stunk to high heaven and would I be interested in his rescue. As a Dog lover, you know, I could not resist, esspecially since I have grown to Love the Samoyed ( Sammy). I made arrangements to pick him up and I told my wife we would only keep him until we could find a home for him, but I knew in my heart we were brought together for a reason. We took him in and he seemed to be frightened and timid but he came around after a few days. We immediately had him groomed and shuffled off to the Vet. The Vet told us he had a very bad ear infection (hence the odor), he seemed to be very stressed and the ligiments behind his knees appear to have snapped causing him to limp like he was. They said they could surgically repair his legs but we were not in a position at the time, financially, to afford it and they said he doesn't appear to be in much pain. Also, there would be no one to be with him during the day after the surgery since we both work full-time. We decided to put it off for a while and save up and fiqure out a way to afford him some care for recovery. He was rebounding very nicely and all his hair came back and he seemed to be a very happy boy. Everyone he met Loved him and he them. He was also very photogenic and I have a million pictures of him. I entered him into a photo contest on the internet and he won for the month he was entered and automatically was entered for Dog of the Year. He came in second for Dog of the Year but he is published in a book called 'The Worlds Cutest Pets for 2006'. He is the Dog pictured in a 2006 Calender for November of 2006.

In September 2004 we took him to the vet to begin the process of repairing his knees. Our Vet looked at him and said they'd like to prescribe him some steroid and anti-biotic then they would see him in about two weeks. The next day we went on a vacation to the New Jersey Shore just north of Atlantic City to an Island called Brigantine. About the second day in, Cubby became very ill. We were really worried and there were no vets open because the vacation season was over and everyone went back to the mainland. We called our vet at home who concluded, after several hours of calls and call backs and minor treatments of pepcid, that the steroid may be affecting his liver. They said to take him to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia (2 hrs away) to the emergency room. So off we went. They admitted him to their Vet Hospital and after eight days of probing and pricking and x-raying and sedating they released him. I went to visit him everyday and the conditions were horrible. They had a catheter and IV in him and kept saying they wanted to put a feeding tube in him. They could not get him to eat, so after two days, I started to bring his food from home to him and you should have seen the attendants jaw hit the floor as they watched him eat out of my hand. Every night I had to go down there and feed him and they asked me to give him some nutrient concoction too which he took with no problem. To make a long story short, they released him 8 days after admission and provided me with his records of his stay that rivaled a text book. He had to take several meds and the bill was outrageous!! We got him home and he slowly got back to normal except he was no longer a fan of walking or standing for any long period of time. We believe his muscles in his legs just gave up from being down in the hospital for eight days. I took him to neuro vets, hollistic vets and pediatric vets and no one could give me a good prognosis, except the hollistic vet but she lived so far from us we couldn't keep the appointments. The bills were mounting but I promised him he would be able to run again if only for a day.

The coming month's, in hind sight, would be the beginning of the end. He had to be carriend outside to go to the bathroom and while we were at work he would soil his bed as well as his rear end and I came home to a mess on a daily basis. I would spend the first hour and a half cleaning him and the mess he made. Strangely enough I didn't mind, you see I Loved him so much as if he were my own child, I would do it again for just one more chance to give him what I promised him - a run in the park with me.

A friend told us about a local healer who may be able to help him. We made an appointment and after she took one look at him she started into us about putting him down. She told us he had no chance for a normal life and we were hanging on for our own selfish reasons. I lit into this lady, I told her she didn't know what she was talking about and she didn't know us or she couldn't even see the sparkle in his eyes when he looks at us. The next week was the toughest week I ever remember experiencing in my adult life. I guess my subconscious mind knew she was right and it eventually took over. The following Friday morning, November 4, 2005, I called my Vet and told them "I think it is time". The appointment was for 7:30 that evening so my wife could be there with me. I got home from work at 4:30 and sat and held him and cried like a baby til my wife got home then we all held each other and cried. Cubby seemed to understand and seemed somewhat relieved. He had been in pain for three years that we know of, and it had gotten worse towards the end. It was common for me to wake up in the middle of the night to his yelps and lay with him til he went back to sleep. He was on pain meds for several months and it was difficult to gauge their effectiveness. The next part was surreal. I remember holding him and crying as the vet gave him the first shot to make him sleep, then the second to stop his magnificent heart. I stayed in the room for many minutes in shock. I felt like I failed him....

When we received his ashes a card came with it, It had the story of the Rainbow Bridge on the inside and a note from Cubby that said: Thank You for giving me your Love.

I realized then at that moment, the promise I made to Cubby will happen in the meadows by the Rainbow Bridge where we'll meet again someday.


Thanks,

Bob Zwaan
Holmes, PA