How long did you wait before you got another Bullie?
Submitted by mslita on September 4, 2010 - 1:53pmHi all. Been away from the boards for several months. It was hard to come here after December because we lost our beloved Tiffy very quickly to cancer last November.
How long did some of you wait before you got another Bulldog? We've done a little fostering and doggy-sitting in the meantime. My husband's not ready yet, and I respect that. We will probably rescue a Bulldog since there are so many abandoned ones out here in California.
Thanks,
Lita
Hi Lita
We lost Rocky this past January and my husband is not ready yet either. I do miss not having a bully but I also have to respect his feelings and just wait till the time is right again.
Jo Ann
Quite some time
I took it very hard when Arthur (RIP) died. He was 4. I could not look at pics, hid his ashes in the trunk and had to get rid of most of his stuff. Whenever I saw a white bully I started crying, my heart ached so much. I found a wonderful breeder and went on her waiting list. Both parents were brindle, as I could not bear to have another white. It ended up to be 5 years. My wonderful dark brindle/white Mr. Higgins is 6 now. I did learn, however, you cannot replace one with another. The pain and emptiness will always be there. It is terrible.
I know how hard it is...bet you miss your Rocky a lot
January may seem like a long time ago, but it's not. Every once in a while, I still hear the clicking of Tiffy's toenails or think I hear her barking in the middle of the night.
If it's not too painful, did Rocky pass from old age or did he come down with something like Tiff did?
Lita
He passed unexpected
Rocky was 7 1/2 in good health and something happened all of a sudden he threw up his supper that evening and couldn't breath we could'tn get his throat clear so we rushed him to our vet who was still open. He had to suction him and put a tube in so he could breath. He does not keep dogs overnight so we had to go to the emergency hospital. They stablized him that night called me around 12:30 said his blood work was good but he had asperated they could see it int he x rays so they started him on antibiotics said they would call again if there was any serious change. It all went down hill from there over that weekend. He sould never have died. I don't think he was taken care of over the weekend. I got all his records and had my breeder take a look at them and he concered he didn't see any thing in them to have the ending we had except that they didn't get him up and moving. Probably short staffed.
We are so heart broken and as I said my husband can't even look at another bully yet.
I am so happy for you that you were able to open your heart to another one.
Jo Ann
Soooooooo sorry! We still haven't got another one yet
We've just fostered and doggy sat. It's very hard. Oh, you must be DEVASTATED! You're right. He shouldn't have died. I don't know what I would have done. You can't beat yourself up. YOU did the best you could. You took him into the vet immediately, and that's all you could do.
My prayers are with you,
Lita
i am so sorry but maybe
the best thing to do would be getting another dog. our 15 year old sheperd momo died of bloat and that was totally shocking and i was so traumatized i couldnt even work for a week. i know it feels like someone just punched you in the gut and ripped out your heart. my husband suggested that we go to the pound and play with some dogs since i was so depressed and couldnt eat or sleep... the house felt so empty. we went, not expecting to pick up anyone.. but the shelter lady told us she was fostering a bully and a kelpie and that they could not be seperated, otherwise they would be too sad. no one wanted the kelpie because she was already 12. we love old dogs, but never had a bully.. i was expecting like a slobbering monster, but kibby ended up to be sooo special- so special, that i too have this insane bully addiction now.. i totally get why people love these dogs, they are so different.
so i imagine , what if we never went that day because i was too sad.. imagine if someone else had these 2 sweet ladies i got to adopt? i know its hard, but i believe it truly helps the healing process and just think if u are going to rescue someone, they are there, just sitting and waiting for you to be ready now.
i come to realize that dogs will always come and go, and no one in this universe will ever replace momo- or my new ladies- kibby and gabby now.. but its kinda exciting to think about who you will meet and save when its time to adopt another... i look at the rescue pages quite often, even now.. just to see if any dog may fit in with us sooner rather then later , as gabby is getting older.. i worry now, that kibby will be lonely without her one day.
sincerely, christine
What a wonderful story, Christine!
There's a special place in Heaven for people like you! Bless your heart. You've given two old ladies a nice retirement home. If you hadn't taken them, they probably would have been euthanized.
You might want to look into the possibility of introducing another dog as long as these two DON'T have any dominance issues. Having another slightly younger dog might make Kelpie's passing easier on Kibby. The new dog shouldn't be too aggressive or too energetic so as to upset the old folks. I'm not an expert on placing dogs, so ask the rescue people who have way more experience than I do.
thanks..
neither dog is really dominant.. gabby is turning 14 soon.. kibby is 6 now... in a perfect world, they would pass at exactly the same time.. but gabby is getting older alot quicker lately.. Kibby is only pushy (bully!) when it comes to gabby , but not aggressive or anything, more like trying to get in line first for a treat or gently walking over her to sit closer to us on the couch... she knows gabby doesnt care and puts up with it. But when we are out, gabby is the social butterfly and kibby doesn't really care for anyone else.. dogs will sniff her, people will pet her , but she only likes/play with us and gabby. so i was thinking maybe another older dog/bully as well? maybe we really have to consider it by next summer.
sincerely, christine
Good idea to think about it now...what about Bulldog meet-ups?
If there's a Bulldog meet-up in your area, take Kibby and see what she's like around other bullies. Some bullies DO NOT tolerate others of their breed, but do ok with other types of dogs. You won't know until you try.
Lita
Another dog
I would advice you to go on fostering for the rescue organisation. There will be one that touches your heart and (s)he can stay!
I've got my fourth Bulldog now, and have learned that coping with the loss of the old one is really helped by getting an other puppy! By the time the one I own is getting older, I start looking at breeders, rescuesites etc, just to know what is around. Just be clear to the breeder you visit that as long as the old one is there, there will be no puppy (and most people will understand that!).
The pain of the one you lost will stay anyway, and will be there every now and again (even from the one that died more than 20 years ago), so you can't wait it out anyway.
Why not have another dog to live with, one you can give a good home and cuddle. He will get his own place in your heart!
The moment you feel you can cope with raising a puppy, or care for a rescuedog - go for it!
Lots of strenght!
Ineke and Zorro
Ineke
You did the right thing in waiting...and my crazy dream
It is just SOOOOO hard at times. I had a dream the other night - pretty freaky - that my Tiffy came back from the dead. No, she wasn't a zombie or anything, she looked ok, just a little slower, and my husband and I said, "No, Tiff, you can't sit out in the full sun on the tanbark like that, you'll get too overheated." And she responded, telepathically, "I'm ok. I'm dead, remember?" And we said, "Oh, you died too soon!"
Weird, huh?
Lita