Gus

It has been very sad at our house the last 24 hours. Our dog Gus, aka Gustafson Fritz Wagner, had to be put to sleep yesterday. He was with us for 10-1/2 years and we miss him a lot. As Reagan so aptly put it this morning, "Our yard is just a regular yard now without Gus."
He always watched for us to come home.

He loved for all of us to be outside with him.

Just a few memories I have of Gus:

1. When I brought him home, Darrell and I made this pen beside our house for him with cattle panels because our yard wasn't quite puppy proof yet. That little ball of fur crawled through the holes of the cattle panel to get to us. We then tied 2x4s at the height where he was crawling out. He climbed higher.

2. He was probably 10 weeks old when we had a terrible thunderstorm. At that time I had an old chair on the porch with a plant sitting on it. He was so scared that the next morning we couldn't hardly coax him out from under the chair and he was wet sloppy mess. From then on, if it was thundering, you had to be careful going out the door or into the garage because if he got in, you weren't getting him out.

3. Before Darrell and I put cows on our place, we would take him down to our tank. One day when we did, he bulldozed himself into the tank. He had so much mud on his face that all you could see were his eyes.

4. His first dove season, he got so worked up that he escaped from the yard and went to the hunters camp on the place next to us. When Darrell went to pick him up, the hunters had given him ice chunks to lick and chew on. From then on, he loved for me to bring my Sonic cups home with the ice.

5. When we first brought Reagan home, he was very protective of us. He wouldn't let people in the gate. It was amazing to me that he understood that he had a new member of the family and she needed his protection.

6. He loved to play ball with Reagan and Darrell. They had this game where Darrell would throw one ball on the roof and Reagan would go get another. Gus really didn't like to give up the toy/ball he had, he just wanted you to chase him.

7. He chased the cows relentlessly. That is why we had to keep him in the yard when they were at the house. I remember him chasing our bull through the tank one year when the tank was very low. Scared me to death. He never like Darrell to be out of the yard with the cows. He would run up and down the fence and bark incessantly. Then when everyone was in the house you could look out the window and sometimes catch him playing kissy-face with the baby calves. I really think he liked their milk breath because he also loved milk. Calmest dog you have ever seen when you walked out the door with a jug of milk.

8. He saved us from many snakes - most of them rattlesnakes. I never was afraid to walk into our yard at night because I knew if there was anything there he would have already found it.

9. He killed racoons, armadillos, fox, cats, etc., that dared to venture into HIS yard.

We loved this dog for all of his loyalty and companionship and he will be missed.

If any of you know of reputable German Shepherd breeders, please let me know. Also, Reagan is looking for a tiger-striped grey kitten (short hair) so that we can raise the dog and cat together. She could never have a cat before because Gus would have eaten it for lunch.