Sooner

When I first saw Sooner crammed into a tiny cage at the mall, I felt so sorry for her.  She was obviously too large for the tiny cage.  When I asked the lady if I could see her, she said, " That mean dog??  I don't know why anyone would want to see that dog!"  Once she was out of the cage she was the happiest puppy. Already 3 months old, she was very skinny and starved for attention. 

Austin, my son had been wanting a dog forever.  The next day I took him to see her.  I had thrown the cat carrier in the back of e truck--just in case.  Once again, when we asked to see her, the lady told us she was a really mean dog.  Once in the puppy room her personality came alive, and she seemed like the perfect happy little puppy.  She was a Blue Heeler, also called Australian Cattle Dogs, and full blood.  I twas an additional $200 to get her papers so I delcined and so started Austin's love affair with His Dog.    Austin was 18, and going to South Plains College.  He was living at home and the understanding was that when he left, Sooner was to go with him.  He promised she would go with him.

She was  darling puppy.  Her right ear flopped over not yet able to stand up on its own.  She had white "Bracelets" around each of her front ankles.  We accidentally left the front gate open on the second day but there was Sooner sitting faithfully guarding the house.  A couple of months later Austin decided to move into an apartment and although he had promised to take Sooner with him--she stayed at our house.  She had gotten so attached to Austin that no matter how much attention we paid to her, she was always looking for Austin.  He would come home and take her for rides in the back of the truck which she dearly loved.  We had begun to notice a quirk, Sooner was terrified of thunder.  She would scratch furiously at the door and when we let her in she woudl go to Austin's room, and put only her head under the bed.  When we would try to get her out she would snarl and bite and snap.  It would usually be 24 hours before we could approach her.  Unfortunately is would be 6 years before she and Austin would actually live together again.

Sooner was not  happy living with Jim and me, although we tried very hard to bond with her.  She made it distinctly clear that she did not like me, Jan, feeding her.  When I would have to feed her she would snap at me before I could get close enough to the bowl to put the food in.  When Jim was out of town I finally got to where I would open the door and just throw the food on the patio to jeep her from snapping at me.  I could occassionally pet her but only in Jim or Ausitn's presence.  When Sooner was 2 years old we added another puppy to our household.  Austn had assured us that Sooner would be going to live with him shortly.  Tristan was a lab, border collie mix.  He unfortunagly had gotten the bad qualities of both breeds.  He was hyper, clumsy and had no memory evidently.  When he was about 6 months old Sooner started to bite his beautiful little brown nose.  Unlike most dogs he seemed to want to just go back for more and more abuse.  His pretty nose started to look like the caulifower ear of a boxer.  We tried putting Sooner in another part of the yard where they couldn't get together but that caused  her to start to bark. 

The one day we came home from church and noticed the gate was open.  Tristan was gone.  Sooner however was sitting at the back door like the guardian of the house.  For weeks we hunted forTris but no one had seen him.  I called the pound every day, checked at the Humane Society adoption day on Saturday at PetsMart but no Tristan.  Sooner continued to be nice to the people she liked and bite or snap at those (me) she didn't like.  

In 2007 my mother died and within 6 months my father had also died.  Since it was so hard to keep up two houses I told Austin that he could move into my parents house--for keeping it up and doing the yard.  He was thrilled because now for almost the first time he and Sooner could be together.  Sooner quickly took over the place.  She slept on the floor by Austin's bed, and if her bed wasn't there--she moved it.  They lived there for two years and she was the happiest she had ever been.  She did have a kennel she would get in, but if anoyone besides Austin, ever trie to close the door she would bite them.  She seemed to remember that tiny cage in the pet store.

In Janary of 2010  Austin was transferred to San Antonio, and had to move to an apartment.  Jim and I had gotten a Border Collie puppy the summer before.  Her name was Skye and she was only  6 months old when Sooner once again returned to invade her space.  Sooner seemed to respect that fact that Skye had been there first this time and for awhile they seeemed to tolerate each other.  When  Skye played with her toys Sooner would  get agressive and snatch them away from her.  Sooner didn't want them, just wanted to take them away from Skye.  Skye seemd to understand that Sooner didn't like her and with her quick moves and ability to run, managed to stay out of Sooners way.  Once again the feeding problem surfaced.  As She had done with Tristan,Sooner would eat her food and at the same time not allow Skye to eat-they hd separate bowls.  She could take a bite and look to see if Skye was eating, then charge Skye and take over her bowl, as Skye would circle around to Sooner's bowl the whole routine woudl be repeated again.  We started to bring Skye in so they both could eat alone. 

We in the meantime had started to build a new house.  It was downsizing from the hosue we were currently in, and also had about 1/3 of the yard.  At that point we told Austin, you need to get into a position to take Sooner with you.  It will just not work with both dogs in the small yard.  He assured us he would.  But everytime we tlaked to him he had not found a way or place to be able to tak her with him.  Her agressiveness continued to escalate.  She showed more disdain for me and further more the snapping and biting had started to emerge even with Jim.  Now when it thurndered she would pound at the door.  When Jim would go out to feed her, she would rush him, almost knocking him down and go for the bed. If anyone evern came in to the room or the attached bathroom, they would be met with her bared teeths and fierce growls.  I was afraid of her and would close the door until she yipped to come out.   We continued to tell Austin that he needed to come and get her, he never seemed to be able to work out a solution.

We moved into the new house in August of 2010.  I had come to the conclusion that two dogs in a tiny yard was going to have to some way work. I ordered two new doghouses, that looked like Snoopy's from Hayneedle.  When the houses arrived, we arranged them in the yard with the backs of the houses together and food bowls in front.  That way Sooner could not see Skye and vice versa, Sooner would be able to eat without seeing Skye, and could go into her house without seeing Skye.  Sooner however soon realized this was the plan.  She started to eat then, charged around the houses to Skye's food.  Skye would back up in fear as Sooner finished Skye's food.  One day it was raining and both dogs were in their houses.  Suddenly Sooner charged out fo her house and into Skye's house pinning Skye to the back of her house.  When the dogs emerged Skye ran to the back of the yard.  Sooner stood proudly by Skye's house.  Skye never went in it again.  When it rained Skye would be happily wagging her tail in the rain while Sooner sat snug in her house with her nose out ready to chase Skye away from the empty house.

Skye was very good hearted and seemed to understand Sooner's quirks.  We had been in the new house for a month.  Jim went out to feed the dogs.  The new routine was; he would feed Sooner first and then Skye--then he would stand by Skye until she finished eating so Sooner wouldn't take her food too.  Jim put Sooner's food in her bowl, she started to eat.  He walked around the doghouses to the other bowl. As he began to pour it into Skye's bowl, Sooner charged around the house, grabbed Skye by the back of the neck and started to shake her.  It was apparent that her intention was to kill.  Jim jumped into the fray immediately and pulled Sooner off the pup and then Sooner turned and began to attack Jim, biting him on the foot.

After consulting two vets, the humane society and the animal shelter we decided that Sooner had to be put down.  I had never had to put a healthy, smart animal down.  Jim and I were both so torn.  We had come to the point that we were both afraid of Sooner.  Jim loaded Sooner into the truck, tried to call Austin and took her to the animal shelter.  They advised us that we could not take the chance with her anymore.  One of the vet's told me that animals, like people could have mental illness.  Sooner was obviously one of those dogs.  It had probably started back at the pet store in the too small cage,  being fed too seldom.

Skye hiding from Sooner behind the new doghouses.

So Sooner--we really did love you.  If only you could have seen that and loved us back. I never met an animal I didn't love--but I also hadn't eve met one who couldn't love back. Bye Sooner.