Tips for Dealing with the Death of a Pet

Twelve years ago, just before leaving work, I saw an ad for Siberian Husky puppies in one of those free all advertising papers. Since childhood, I had been fascinated by the Husky breed and was curious about what the pups looked like. I had no intention of actually buying one of the puppies, although it was a consideration if I liked what I saw.

I called the number and talked to the breeder briefly. The man told me not to look unless I was prepared to take one of the puppies home, as I would likely "fall in love with 'em". Being of a skeptical nature, there was some doubt about that. As luck would have it, the man still had all of the pups as the ad had just been published that afternoon. A male Husky with blue eyes would be tempting, even if the dog show snobs look down on that particular trait.

"Gimme a minute" the man said. It seems he would need to separate the 7 puppies from their mother, who was in the garage. The puppies were seven weeks old to the day he said. When he opened the door leading from the garage to the backyard, the furry puppies all rushed into the yard at once, like a bunch of eager shoppers flocking to the front door of Wal-Mart at 5:30 A.M.on the day after Thanksgiving.

I had the man show me one of the blue-eyed boys and held the little fellow up close. He was cute, but very shy and retiring. The others seemed much the same, except for one black and white ball of fur, who strutted and bounced as if leading a parade. This little guy was all over the place, playing with his littermates and generally acting like the alpha male of the bunch. "What about that one?" I inquired. "Let's have a closer look".

As soon as I held the 10 pound pup, down-soft coat and all, there was no doubt this was the one. Leaving without him was suddenly not an option. Others would be arriving to check out the puppies soon and this one wasn't going to last long. After asking the man if he would take a check, he'd rather not, he said, the next question was: would he consider holding this one for as long as it took to go to the nearest ATM? "Okay, I'll put him in the living room until you get back" he replied.