We put Carl to sleep this morning. He was a great dog, I am sad that he is gone. His health has been deteriorating over the last few months. Last month, he developed some arthritis in his hind legs which made going on walks more difficult. This morning, he had a seizure, so my parents-in-law (where Carl has lived for the last year and a half) took him to the animal clinic. We decided this morning that because of all the health problems and the damage to his brain from the stroke, it was best to put him to sleep.
Carl lived a good life (~86 dog years). My roommate, Dave Hanke found him in 1995 wandering in a Chinese restaurant parking lot. He was a tiny puppy at the time and couldn't have been more than 2 months old. We tried to find his owner, but to no avail, so we kept him.
I have lots of memories of Carl which I will write later.
Some highlights: countless runs around Town Lake together, jumping the six foot fence at our Little Elm house, playing with Rebel (Bennett Deese's doberman), bringing home huge pieces of meat from the neighborhood butcher, "protecting" our house from the mailman and sitting on my desk as I worked when he was a puppy
Please feel free to submit some "Carl memories" as comments....
16 comments:
I loved to dog-sit Carl. In the mornings on such occasions, we would always go for a run. From across the room, he could spot my eyelash twitch at the first sign of waking from sleep. He then would come over, rest his little nose and mouth on my bed beside my face, and wait for me to wake up. Sweet, precious little Carl!
I am so sad at this news. My favorite Carl memory is Scott 'training' him to obey. Instead of Carl doing what Scott was asking him to do, Scott began asking Carl to do what Carl was already doing. For example:
A guest arrives at Scott's house
Scott "Carl, sit."
Carl-- with tongue wagging jumping up and trying to lick in mildly inappropriate ways the guest.
Scott "Carl, jump up. Run away from me. Smell that bush..." etc, etc.
He had an unbelievable vertical. I still remember my shock and awe when I was standing in the front yard and watched Carl easily clear the 6ft fence to join me.
Finally, I would like Scott to post the pictures of him giving Carl a bath in his shower-- showering with his dog. Man's best friend.
I am sad for your loss, Scott. You did a great job caring for him.
Carl was such a sweet dog - and a perfect pet and friend for Scott for so many years. It is hard to believe he is gone. I will never forget the smile he put on Scott's face - and all the great laughs we had as a staff hearing about Carl's latest fence jump. Blessings to all as you rightly grieve and remember.
I always thought that Carl was like the perfect dog, especially after experiencing life with other dogs who lick, bark, and jump on people like crazy. Carl was a bit mellow - like his owner, I guess. Most of my interactions with him involved running around the lake. On the mornings when I was "less motivated," I would offer to hold his leash, so he could pull me along. I remember the last time we ran with him, he impressed me so much. We were rounding the corner for the home stretch at the end of the trail, and this HUGE dog darted and snarled at Carl in a very aggressive way. I think I screamed, even, but Carl just kept cruising along. I was so amazed at his calm in the face of danger. Many lessons you could learn from a cool dog like Carl. We'll miss him a lot. God bless you guys!
-V
Carl was the humble leader of our running pack. He worked harder than all of us to stay in the front. Quiet and gentle, but dedicated and strong, he showed the attributes that us men hope to attain.
So sad to hear about Carl's passing. I had to have my Sophie (a Carl-looking kind of dog) put to sleep this summer, too. Almost the exact scenario. A hard loss.
My favorite memory of Carl is how friendly he always was when I broke into Scott's house. :) Back in the day when Scott's house over in Tarrytown was the hang out, and you could almost always count on the door being unlocked for handing off various items or getting ready for a party. I like to think it was because Carl was so smart and recognized me.
So sad to hear of Carl's passing. I loved that Carl would just come up to you and let you pet him for hours. When our community group met at your house, it was always fun to see Carl hanging out with all of us. I know that we're not supposed to have favorites in Community Group, but he was mine.
Carl was a great dog to say the least! I'm blessed to have a couple of good memories of his life. I remember bringing over our family heeler Dundee to Scott's old house and when I introduced him to Carl, they played and wrestled all night. It was as if they were separated at birth because they looked and acted so much alike. A couple of years ago, when Jan and I were driving in the Friesen's neighborhood looking at houses, I saw Carl just strolling down the street as if he were just out for some exercise. I rolled down my window and said, "Carl, go home!" And he turned around and headed back to the house which was a few blocks away. Then, we were looking at a house about 6 houses down from Scott's Carl comes trotting up the road again. I called for him to come and he come running full speed at the sound of his name. Then, I told him to go home again, and sure enough, he did. What a smart and responsible dog Carl was. He will be missed by all.
We can relate to losing such a dear friend. Feel free to openly grieve with us whenever you need to.
Carl was special to me also. When on trips to Austin I would walk him or he me. When I got the leash he was a excited as could be. He was a smart dog. I'll miss him also. Dad
1) Our game of him biting my hand and me pulling him around the floor by his teeth.
2) Him jumping over our 6' fence.
3) His summertime buzz, compliments of Duff.
4) Him eating Steve's sandwich.
5) Carl ignoring the shock collar.
6) Having Carl jump 7' in the air for a doggie biscuit.
7) Having Carl over when Free went out of town.
8) Letting him run with us without a leash.
9) The absolute worst dog farts, ever. Seriously.
10) His animosity for the mailman.
11) Always knowing that he'd come back.
I could go on. Carl was one of my favorite dogs, ever. There just is no replacement for a dog that cool. He'll be missed.
I love that Carl was enjoyed by so many. He was just way too cool and that is evident by all these comments. My favorite Carl memory is the one Brandon shared above. Okay, I'm getting teary eyed now.
Carl was the coolest dog ever. So sorry guys.
Carl was definitely a big part of our Community Group while we met at Scott's back in the day! Whether it was Carl jumping over the fence and Scott being out in the street looking for him... or Carl just being mellow and laying on the floor - he was a cool dog.
My memory of "Carl the Great" was when we were running at Town Lake. This bike came out of nowhere and basically ran little Carl over. Carl got up, wiped off the confused look he had on his face (while the rest of us stood there in awe...) and started running again. What a trooper. Sweet memories of an awesome dog.
So sad to hear about Carl! Glad to hear you had him a good long time, though. I remember years ago, going to Coffee Talk (well before "Community Groups"!) at that house off Rundberg that you lived in with Chris and Steve, and Carl would hang out there with us while we had group time, resting paw over leg with his chin on the floor. He had such an intelligent face. And I remember hearing about his ignoring the "invisible fence" collar and jumping over the fence in spite of it! Great dog.
Sorry to hear about Carl. Great dog. My Carl memory was staying with Scott while comutting from Houston to Austin and stepping on a "soft pillow" in the middle of the night and hearing it yelp.
Carl put the c in cool. He was hip, mellow and so kind. He was so soft to pet and incredibly soothing. I love when he let you know to pet him some more, be it in his look or actual nudges with his snout!
He was also so fun to run with. I love when he proclaimed to all at Town Lake that he was here and about to run! His whole body got all kinds of excited at running. He was a running machine who doubled as a bird chaser (which looked fun for the person holding the leash). Carl had the sweetest eyes and expression. We're all blessed to have had him with us. Thanks Scott for rescuing him and sharing him with us!
Post a Comment