My dog is the coolest because...
he is just a big, beautiful beast. Buckley is an 11 year old NAID (Native American Indian Dog) which means he is mix of Husky, Malamute and German Shepherd, with maybe a little moose in there. We found him while searching for hypoallergenic dog breeds because we have some serious allergies in the family. We have no idea why, but he does not cause any allergy flare ups for anyone. This is just part of his magic. He is quiet and mellow. He prefers to be outside chasing squirrels, chipmunks rabbits, and unfortunately sometimes our chickens. He has the eyesight of a fighter pilot, but is the worst at catching food morsels. Seriously. Try tossing him a bit of cheese. It will just bounce off his noggin. Sometimes he gets antsy, so we “sing” to him. He has a beautiful baritone voice. Wherever he goes, Buckley just seems to draw people to him. He walks around like the mayor. No matter who you are, you can just walk right up and hang out with him. Sometimes small dogs get freaked out by his size and start yapping at him. He just ambles on. People always ask, “Hey, is he part wolf?” We promise them he is not. A wolf would have no problem catching food tossed at him.
Back in 2013, when Buckley was 2 years old, we almost lost him. One night he started shaking and just seemed “off” so we took him to the emergency vet. By the end of night, he could no longer walk. The vets all scratched their heads. He was misdiagnosed with an autoimmune disorder that required he be fed sitting upright in a sort of doggie high chair. For life. Can you imagine keeping a 115 lb dog upright for every feeding? We were frantic. After days of watching him decline our country vet made a house call, took one look and said, “Huh. It’s rare, and I’ve only seen it once in 20 years, but this could be coon hound disease. Probably caused by a tussle with an infected raccoon.” We weren’t sure what diagnosis we were expecting, but it definitely wasn’t that. Over the next 2 weeks the vet gave Buckley palliative care, saying he had a 50/50 chance of walking again. It was the only time I ever saw my father-in-law cry. But somehow, slowly, miraculously, he began to walk. It took weeks of slowly building up his strength, taking longer and longer walks. Until, suddenly he was Buckley again. Just like that. Like it had never happened. Now he’s back to chasing squirrels, deer and yes, our chickens. He still can’t catch food out of the air, but we love him anyway. He has watched over our family for 11 years and continues to keep an eye on us. We cannot imagine life without him.