R.I.P. OD

Of the three dogs we’ve had over the past dozen or so years, only one of them remained after this past year. Victor, 14, died on January 5, 2006, after being run over by a car that he was unable to hear or avoid. Jack, 13, died on January 30, 2006, from assorted heartworm complications and grief over the passing of Victor. That left OD, a.k.a. “the big white dog”. OD died sometime early this morning, apparently of complications stemming from heartworms, as well. He was 14 years old.

Services were held under the cedar tree in the back yard, where the other two had been interred a year previous. OD was survived by Moller (“Molly”), age 7 months. He was preceded in death by Puppy Chow (English shepherd, named after the dog food), 12, in ’92; Slick (purebred black Labrador retriever), 5, that same year; Fluffy (his brother), 0.5, ’92; Buddy (purebred black Labrador retriever), 1.5, ’00, Victor (previously profiled in his own obituary), 14, ’06, and Jack (his brother), 13, ’06.

OD was born sometime during the summer of 1992, a Brittany spaniel/Eskimo spitz mix, and was given to my mother by a coworker. He arrived around October, 1992. It was because of Fluffy’s premature death and Jack’s subsequent severe mourning that we obtained the last remaining available brother to alleviate Jack’s pain. Because of his late arrival, we called him “The Other Dog”, which was quickly shortened to “OD”.

It’s the end of an era around my house.