Author’s
Note: I apologize for the very long
hiatus in this blog…In fact, I’m very hangdog about the whole matter, and it’s
all because I need to tell some tough truths.
On October
26, 2011, my best Vizsla friend, Tipsy, died suddenly from hemangiosarcoma. In typical Tipsy fashion, she didn’t complain
and didn’t say anything was bothering her.
She appeared fine on Saturday at the Mom’s Agility Fundraiser, and she
slept most of Sunday in the sun with Shadow while I went to the 5K with Mom and
Dad. Monday she seemed a little down, so
off to Dr. King, and then she got very sick on Tuesday. Mom and Dad took her to the Emergency Room on
Wednesday where they learned how sick she really was - so sick that we needed
to let her go. She died in Mom’s arms,
wagging her tail and all curled up as if she were taking a nap. Dad and MomZ
there talking to her and sending her across the Rainbow Bridge to meet all the
all other Zsoldos Vizlsas: Minnie, Kicsi,
Rebel, Janci and Zsuzsa all supervised by Laszlo Zsoldos, Mom’s Dad who died in
1984.
I don’t think
I know where and what “dead” is. From my
view, Tipsy left in Dad’s arms and we didn’t see her ever again. How could she
just leave the house and never come back?
It’s a mystery to me. Mom and I
have talked about it a lot. She wanted
me know to know though Tipsy was gone, she still loved me very, very much.
Tipsy was
Mom’s special dog. Although she was only with the pack for four years (she came
to Mom’s home a year before I did), she and Mom became one heart.
Tipsy always
knew when Mom wasn’t feeling well. Tipsy was Mom’s napping dog. She loved sleeping in the sun on the floor,
and on Mom’s bed. There was nothing both
of them loved more than to curl up around each other and sleep.
One thing I
remember about Tipsy is that sunlight loved Tipsy. On fine days when the door was open, the sun
seemed to slow its march across the sky so that Tipsy could revel in it either
curled up in a tight ball, lazily lying on her side where she could keep an eye
on Mom, greedily offering her entire tummy up to the sun’s warm splendor. The sun, itself, dimmed briefly in mourning
when Tipsy left us.
To be with
Tipsy was to experience love and life at its fullest. She never met a person she didn’t like. Trips to the bark park found her ignoring other
dogs (unlike yours truly), but going from bench to bench, jumping up next to
strangers, laying her head on their shoulder while her eyes caressed the new
person. You could see her saying, “I’m Tipsy,
and I’ll be your social director during my stay here.”
Tipsy shared
her love freely with all. She allowed
others to see the world through her eyes; her world was simple – eat, love,
eat, roll in the grass, roll in goose poop (always a rare treat), roo-roo-roo
for dinner stinky treats, put her head on someone’s leg and moan with deep
content.
For those of
you who have been lucky enough to have been owned by one of us Vizslas know
that there as many reasons to love us as there are pieces little red hair that we
leave around. Our little red hairs have
a magnetic attraction for any textured surface.
Our hair is impervious to removal by vacuum cleaners, masking tapes,
lint rollers, and dog hair sponges.
MWHAHAHA
Tiny, little
barbed hairs all over – Mom and Dad and every Vizsla humans wear them with
pride as a reminder of the love that a little red dog brings. We all
miss you, Tipsy.
