“Fish is the only food that is considered spoiled once it smells like what it is.” – P. J. O’Rourke
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Heidi Turns 12
Today, Heidi turned 12 years old! The average age for a Bernese Mountain Dog is, perhaps, 8-1/2 or, at most, 9 years old. So, that makes Heidi over 100 years old in human terms.
This photo was taken about 6 months ago, but she looks the same today. Her brown accent colors are mostly grey. Her eyes are a bit clouded. She doesn’t hear great. And, because of hip dysplasia and some neurological problems, she has a hard time walking.
But, she still is alert and has a lot of spirit. She barks a lot—always has—but more than usual. I think because she can’t get around well she wants us to know she is around.
Heidi has always been mischievous. When we first brought her into our home we were living in France. We got her from the deSavora kennel in Switzerland. We had also brought home a boy, Indiana, about 3 weeks earlier. He was a real sweetie, never doing anything wrong. He didn’t bark, he stayed in the yard which was loosely fenced in by a hedge. When Heidi came she showed him how to escape the yard and how to bark.
But, Heidi has done a lot of good, too. She was trained as a therapy dog and participated in a local Animal Assisted Therapy program. She and I worked with children in the area that were in foster care because of abuse or neglect. Often, they would talk to Heidi about things that they would not talk to a person about. She was very obedient and they could “train” her to follow commands. And, she had several games that she liked to play. We’d used her to get the kids to talk, to build their self esteem, etc. But, after about 4 years she got tired of it and a bit cranky, so retired from therapy work.
Please join us in wishing her a happy 12th birthday!
Posted under: Dog Stuff • by Rick on 04/19/2005 at 10:13 PM
Permalink • eMail this article