The Legend of Zelda

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When I met Dennis, and he was in the middle of the divorce, not only did the kids get displaced, but the family pets did too. He ended up with Smeagol, in the apartment, but the rest of the animals were back at the family home in Tucker. One day we went back over to Tucker to check on the house after everyone had moved out. We found Zelda there, the family dog. She was thin and definitely needed food, and she nipped at me - which Dennis said was unlike her. I didn't know her well enough to know. It was clear we could not leave her there - she would perish. Zelda was a German Shepherd mix, but we think there was a little chow in there because she had a black tongue. She was named as a puppy after the famous game the Legend of Zelda, which the kids were into at the time that they got her. She was a beautiful dog, and for the most part very sweet and loving. Which was why when she nipped at me, this was odd. Dennis brought her back to the apartment, which we thought would be OK (3 bedroom 2 bathroom apartment with the two girls, Smeagol and Dennis) but it was close quarters. Dennis was away in Detroit on business when Caroline came home one day and the apartment was a wreck and there was blood everywhere. Zelda had attacked Smeagol. This again was odd behavior because she grew up with cats, in particular, Smeagol. I took Smeags back to my place to heal and recover, but Dennis was struggling with what to do with Zelda. Kate was about to go back to college, and it was clear he could not keep her in the apartment with Smeagol. Kate ended up taking Zelda back down to school to live in the apartment with her and her roommates. This worked out for a while but then Kate ended up coming back to live with Dennis. By then, Dennis had moved to a house with a fenced back yard. This was a great yard for Zelda. She loved it. Plus she had Kate to walk her and sleep with. They were two peas in a pod. It was during this time I got to know Zelda pretty well. I had never had a dog of my own, so it was a good learning experience, even though she was truly imprinted on Kate. We had many good years at Tucker. Then, Dennis and I moved back in town once Caroline was off to school in Miami. Kate had graduated college with a TESL Degree and took a job teaching English in Korea for a year. By this time, Zelda was probably 13 moving on to 14. She was slowing down. We were worried Zelda wouldn't make it until Kate came back. We would Skype with Kate and let her see/talk to Zelda. One day, I came home from work and Zelda was walking in circles. Something was definitely wrong. She did not react to treats like her normal freak out. I thought she must have had a stroke. Over the course of about 2 months, her circles went from being as large as a lap around our living room/dining room to as tight as 10 feet. She would eventually work her way into corners and get stuck. We'd have to help her back out. She would walk in circles until she was exhausted and collapse. Then she had a seizure. I was freaking out - Dennis just held her down, trying to keep her calm. We took her to the vet and they said she likely had a brain tumor, and gave us anti seizure meds. We kept her going trying to make it until Kate came back from Korea, but secretly agreed with one another that if she lost her appetite, or her bodily functions that we would make the decision to put her down. Neither of us wanted to do that. I had grown to love Zelda like she was my own dog. Even Smeagol who was used to hiding from her was like 'why is she not trying to attack me?' One night, Dennis was at a bartending gig. Zelda was particularly disoriented and I found her stuck in the dining room chairs under the table. I got her out but she kept running into things knocking them over and I knew something was not right. I finally got her to lie down on her bed. She kept trying to get up but she was exhausted. I laid down with her, and spooned her like I knew Kate would do. I whispered in her ear that it was ok to let go, that each one of us loved her - Dennis, Me, Kate, Brad, Caroline, Cindy and that it was ok to let go and move on to doggie heaven. She finally calmed down but her breathing was erratic. It was hard to watch. After about 30 minutes, she passed away with one last breath. I bawled. I also didn't know what to do because I had never witnessed a live animal pass away like that. My friend Anthony was in town, he helped me with it until Dennis came home. We were devastated to call Kate and tell her, especially long distance. There is a little part of me that feels like letting her know we all loved her was all she needed to let go. RIP Sweet Zelda!

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