Arthur

We had to say goodbye to Arthur on February 29th.   His health rapidly declined over the past couple months to the point where he had trouble, and often could not, stand up on his own.  We were so sad to say goodbye but appreciate that he lived a long, happy life with us.

Newly out of college with my first real job and apartment by myself we-ok, I-wanted a dog.  And being the broke young adult that I was, I didn't have much money to invest.  A newspaper ad for $15 puppies caught my attention and Rob and I headed to a not-so-nice part of town to check out said puppies.  This one little guy licked my face and $15 later we drove away with a tiny, 6ish week old ball of fuzz.

Over the months he grew and grew and grew...and it became clear that he wasn't going to be the 30 pound dog we thought he was.   He definitely outgrew the little apartment with the tiny patio in south Tulsa.  When we moved to the big house with the big yard he had lots of room to run...and cause trouble.  He got out of Rob's homemade fence almost everyday-running the neighborhood and cruising around the McDonald's parking lot down the street, digging holes to China in the backyard, and standing in a stagnant old koi pond and contracting habitual staph infections.   We took him everywhere and he had regular playdates with his "cousins."



When we bought our first house in Owasso he adapted to the new house and yard quite well, although the shedding and the muddy paws on our brand new carpet drove us crazy!

























He was definitely out baby though.  I even bought him a puffer jacket and holiday themed bandanas.











































And then...we had a real baby.








































































He was quite obsessed with her.  The night we brought her home from the hospital we had to exile him to the garage due to excessive head-sniffing.

He got shoo'd away a lot, banished to the backyard more and more.  We moved to our current house and added another baby to the bunch.  Arthur was probably really wondering what he got himself into at that point.

































































And who could forget Rob's famous summer haircuts?



He was a dog who wanted to be near us but valued personal space.  He wasn't the kind of dog to tolerate ear or tail pulling or anyone laying on top of him-he'd let you know what he didn't like with a quick bark.  We always taught the kids to give him his space and for the most part they did.  He tolerated the kids much better than we anticipated.

He didn't like "new" people but could usually be bought with treats.

His bark was much bigger than his bite.

He hated having his picture taken.

He didn't play fetch.

He usually got along well with other dogs.

He was very smart and easy to train on most fronts-he could sit, shake, and play dead.  In spite of years of training with various methods and devices, he would NOT walk on a leash without pulling.  And at 100 pounds, when he pulled, you went.  I eventually gave up and I don't think he'd been on a walk in 3 years.

His favorite treat was pig ears.

He was a gentle giant.

He was a great companion.

Ben doesn't really get it and keeps saying Arthur can come home now.  Avery misses Arthur and is already asking for a new pet.




He was such a great dog and we miss having him around.