Sara was buried today

Years ago, when she was younger, she enjoyed sitting at the northwest corner of the yard to bark at the boxer across the alley. Although she had favorite spots all over the yard, the fir tree being her newest fondness, I had decided years ago that when it is her time to go, she would be laid to rest there, either through her cremains or her body.

The pet crematory in Douglas, AZ, I discovered, only deals with animals through a veterinarian. I didn't have the energy to carry Sara's body, which was double-bagged and sealed, into my van to drive the trip to Bisbee. It was in the 90s in the later morning, and her body was already heating up from the bacteria doing its work. I had to act fast.

I researched burying requirements for the area and all I could find was that the body at a minimum must be three feet below ground. So I started digging. The caliche and multitude of heavy rocks didn't make this an easy job, but I wanted the grave as deep as I could get it and have her buried before the forecasted rains were to get here.

I hired Eric to finish the job for me. My upper arms were already tired and he got blisters. I went to Home Depot for two Photinias to go with the rest of the shrubs along that fence. I took Sammy along to cheer him up; he's been looking depressed since losing his companion. We went to the garden center, picked out two small shrubs, and returned home. It wasn't much exercise at all but at least he's getting some attention.

Eric and I were making the finishing touches on Sara's grave when Kevin came home. He looked tired but approved of the work done. I placed two 18" PVC pipes on either side of the shrub to use as watering holes for the shrub's growth and then placed a tomato wire over the shrub, rocks around the top and several pots to keep the dogs from trampling over the small shrub.

I am still baffled by Sara's death and have been thinking about her non-stop. I'm convinced now that she had something else wrong with her, an undiagnosed illness. She had been suffering from incontinence for several months now, and on her last two walks last week she stopped more often than Sammy to pee. And on her very last walk Tuesday she was ready to go home after just one block, after stopping once suddenly as if she didn't remember where she was. I had to speak loudly to her to get her walking again.

She was never tested for diabetes. The DVM never mentioned it on her last two vet visits.

It all doesn't matter now. Sara didn't seem in any other pain or discomfort until early Sunday. While she was peeing inside more, I never got upset because I figured her joints were so inflamed she chose not to have to walk far to urinate. I'm still wondering if that last fight she had with Sweetie caused her trauma that she never overcame? But even Eric said today that Friday, after the vet visit, she seemed in good spirits and even walked around a little on her bandaged knee, even lay in the hallway on her favorite spot before sauntering into the bedroom.

As a younger dog, adopted from the high-kill Fort Huachuca animal shelter, she always had skin issues (itchiness and dandruff) and her fur never had a high shine. It was a dull fur that easily clumped and fell out in patches. She also tired easily after a run and loved laying in mud puddles whenever we'd go on walks. She was never a fit dog, or a true hiking dog, as she tired easily and always needed plenty of water.

I googled various diseases that dogs can die from. Some other dog owners also had similar experiences with their dog dying fast. My comfort is that she didn't suffer for long, she died at home and she's buried outside her home she's had since February 1, 2005. I am comforted in knowing she will always be close by when I walk the yard. Kevin and I were still yelling out her name this morning when we called the pack in.