rough couple of days

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You all have read about our special needs grandson.  After waiting 2 1/2 years (if not longer) he received his special needs dog.  The problem is that even though he's nearly eight, he functions at a four year old level.  So commanding his dog is difficult.  His mom is a teacher that works with kids that get kicked out of class so they have special permission to allow the dog to stay in her classroom and he had been a great help settling kids down.  The plan is to allow the dog to be with our grandson next year in his classroom.

 

Thursday evening we got a frantic call from our daughter.  We immediately went to her house and on the way she called and said "He's dead."   What happened was their other dog, which weighs about twice the special needs dog "uppie", as our grandson called him, were playing in the back yard and somehow  "uppie's choke chain got tangled in the mouth of their other dog. The result was the special needs dog was strangled while our daughter and our 10  year old granddaughter and 11 year old grandson were trying to untangle the choke chain.  A scene and sounds the three of them seem to keep reliving. 

 

They were devastated.  When we arrived at the house, our granddaughter collapsed running to us.  Her knees just buckled under her.  Our daughter was holding the dead dog on a divan on their patio.  After a while, it was decided it was time to bury the dog under a tree that we planted 18 years ago in memory of our son.   We have two other dogs buried under that tree so I was to add this one.  Our daughter told our grandson to say goodbye to his "uppie."

he gave the animal a hug and a kiss.  We wrapped it in a sheet and our grandson watched as we carried it to our vehicle. 

 

After I buried the dog, our granddaughter asked to stay with us.  She wanted to be close to the deceased dog and she slept with the window shades open so she could look out to see he grave in our back yard.  The next morning she was worried about Hudson getting dirty and wet in the ground.  I told her that's why we wrapped him in a clean sheet.  She seemed to accept that.  

 

Yesterday, I took our grandson to lunch and while there he as me "Why my uppie (at) papa's house?"  I think he believes his service dog is at my house.  He said "My uppie owie and doc doc."  His dad explained that the doctor couldn't fix him.

 

This was a freak accident that no one could have predicted.  I believe that our grandson doesn't comprehend what has happened and for him life goes on.   His folks  and siblings are mourning the loss.   Service dogs are never left alone, they are always in the company of their humans so the family was quite attached.   You just never know what situations we'll have to deal with.