#6 My Yellow Lab Cody

In 100 Things About Me, #6 reads:  BUT, I did have a Yellow Lab named Cody who had to be put to sleep 3 years ago due to cancer,  just before his 12th Birthday.

Today....is his Birthday!  He was born on February 27, 1993.  I was 16 years old and was begging for my Parents to let me have a dog.  My Dad had a Springer Spaniel named Frannie, but she was his and I wanted my own.  We had heard from my Nana that my Mom's cousin (who lived across the street from her)  had a Lab that was due to have puppies....and they finally caved.
I will never forget that day....the puppies were just born and I knew I wanted a male.  We went over to look, and as I peered into the welping box I saw HIM.  He was one of the largest males, only one other was larger and he was already taken.  From that point on, I could not wait for him to be ready to take home.  I didn't even have a name for him yet.  We brought him home over Easter weekend, at 5.5 weeks.  I still remember everyone commenting on how big his paws were and what that meant.  They told me to enjoy his time as a puppy, because it wouldn't last long. 
We took him to the vet, and while waiting I read that Cody meant Big Pillow in American Indian...so that's what I named him.  Later on, his paper name would be Three Sheets To The Wind....since his ancestry was named after alcoholic beverages...but according to my Dad...."We should have just thrown those 3 one hundred dollar bills out the car window!" (And you wonder where I get my odd, almost cruel humor)
Fast forward a couple of months......I was working at the Deli and I got a call......my Parents rushed Cody to the Emergency Hospital because he couldn't stand and his stomach was distended.  Turns out, he was born with a weak stomach lining and would need to be on special canned food at $3.00 a can, which he ate 3 of each day!  You can tell at this point  how happy my Father was to hear this news. 
And that was the start of a long, though not so healthy lifetime for my Cody.
To make it easier, here are some points of interest of our life together:

    1) I helped my Dad build a dog run for him, and my Dad built a doghouse to go with it.
    2) A few weeks later we pulled into the driveway to find Cody's head sticking out the side.... he chewed a hole in it.
    3) I had to take my savings and buy him a plastic one that he could not chew.
    4) During the hot days of summer, my Dad put a roof on his dog run to keep it cooler....Cody pulled it  down.
    5) He would always tip over his water bowl, so I ended up getting him a horse bucket and clasping it to his fence.
    6) When it was really hot, he would put his front paws in it and "dig" to cool down.
    7) He would howl in his doghouse because he liked the echo.
    8) Once he ran into his dog house so fast, it was knocked off it's base and he came tumbling out.
    9) After that, my Dad had to secure it to the ground.
   10) In the winter, we would put straw in the dog's houses to keep them warm....Cody always pushed his out.  He did not receive that privilage anymore.
   11) One day he was sick, so we had him on the line in the garage....in one weekend, he chewed two    carpets, scratched three cars, ate the bumper on my Parents Camper, chewed the grill leg, and ate an entire section of lattice off the porch...oh, and a tire cover.
   12)  When I left for college, they tried to make me take him with me....in the dorms.
   13)  He almost always pooped in his cage at night, and if he was left out, would bark until all the  neighbors were awake.
   14)  He went to school with me after the first year, and at one point barked so much someone called the cops.
   15)  When the cops showed up at my door, I opened it and Cody tried to attack one...mainly because he was the trooper type and was wearing a hat...Cody hated men wearing hats.
   16)  One crisp morning, my neighbor walked up our driveway wearing a hooded sweatshirt (and you   guessed it) with the hood up....Cody had his leg in his mouth and wouldn't let go until the neighbor    started yelling.
   17) During his time at College, we were going through 40 pounds of dog food in 2 weeks!  I would take  80 pounds with me to last the month.
    18) And of course, due to his stomach problem, he had to eat the most expensive food on the market.
    19) Another memorable time, he was in my then boyfriend's room at the frat house.  On this  particular night, they were having a pledging event and Cody broke the door down of the room, ran        down three flights of stairs, scared the pledges to a stand still, started to sniff their butts and  eventually lifted his leg on one.
   20)  He had a tendency to pee on people...once my Dad was petting him while Cody was standing on  his back legs in his dog run....he happened to feel something warm at which point he noticed Cody        peeing on his leg.
   21)  Another time, my Parents were talking to a neighbor at the fence, Cody walked over and lifted his  leg on the neighbor's shoe, they were white, and now yellow.
   22)  A few years after college, Cody started having seizures.  We always thought it was due to the    heartworm medication. 
   23)  During one seizure, he jumped up into bed and peed...I was in it.
   24)  After that, he went down hill.  He had many accidents and I would inevitably come home to runny  stools everywhere....but we trudged on.
   25)  He developed hard tumors on his body.
   26)  We were told it was canceer 
   27)  His last day he had bloody stool and could not stand up....I couldn't do it.
   28)  I had a new baby, and my old baby was hanging on by a thread.
   29)  We decided it was time....husband and my Dad took him to the Vet.
   30)  I stayed home and cried holding my Daughter with my Mom.
   31)  The vet called to say she stayed with him the entire time...he went peacefully.
   32)  I lost my best friend, protector and confidant that day.
   33)  He was there through many boyfriends and never judged.
   34)  He would always fight my battles
   35)  I still hang his ornament on the Christmas tree every year.

update:  There will be pictures of Cody later on...for Wordless Wednesday...I thought it was fitting.

Comments

[Rachel]

Old post, sorry I had to comment, thanks for making me bawl. But I laughed a lot too. Cody sounds like he was a very mischievous baby. It is funny the similarities in how our stories began and ended. I was a little younger than you when I begged my parents, Maggie had just turned 12 when we had to put her down, and #32-35 are almost word for word what I wrote this past January.

http://www.crumbsinmycouch.com/we-lost-a-family-member.htm

[Robert]

Awwww, what a cutie. I'm sorry for how you lost him. I know how hard it is to lose a dog. I'm glad you shared pictures and a bit about him.