LIFE
The Day My Dog Got Hit By A Car, Twice
Damaged, but still wagging his tail
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It’s so sad, I had to try to make light of what happened.
My dog was hit by a car today.
Twice.
First, he was hit by my daughter backing out of the driveway. Then by my husband pulling in.
But he’s okay. Kinda.
He’s missing part of his face, but it’s a small part. He will heal. It’s not my daughter’s fault that he took a nap under the rear bumper of the van. She didn’t realize he was there. Not until she heard the thud-thud sound.
And to be fair, Jack was already walking with a limp. So I don’t think my husband should feel guilty for running over him the second time. The dog never sleeps in front of the truck, but for some reason, he decided to nap there today when my husband was unloading wood in the backyard. He never walked around the front of the truck before pulling it back into the driveway. Why would he?
Dumb dog. He should know better.
Jack is a big, old dog. A fourteen-year-old Alaskan malamute and Siberian husky mix we all adore. We adopted him into our family over twelve years ago, and he’s been the perfect addition to our family.
When we first got him, he somehow trained the kids to build forts for him and hand over their Goldfish crackers. They saddled him up like a horse, made him give rides to their stuffed animals, and hid treats in snowbanks just to watch him dig with joy.
We would take him on daily walks, and all our neighbors would stop us to meet Jack.
He’s affectionate, playful, and well-behaved. And with that fabulous coat of fur, you have to pet him — it’s practically a neighborhood rule.
And he’s a great hunter, too.
Well, he used to be. Like I said, he’s old now and not very fast. Recently, my daughter watched a bird land on him while he was napping in the yard, and it pulled out tufts of his fur to put in its nest. He never woke up. Not even when the bird returned a second time to get more. But when Jack was younger, he caught, killed, and ate so many critters in our yard that we kept a ‘confirmed kill’ list taped to the inside of a kitchen cabinet.
Chipmunks 16
Moles/voles 29
Squirrels 0, (close but no cigar)
Rabbits 6
Opposum 3 (but they were just faking)
Mice 23
Birds 2
Frogs/toads 4
And one snake, but we forgot to put it on the list.
Like I said, Jack’s a great dog.
So, how is it that after all the years of him circling the car as you pull into the driveway, or walking right beside our tires as we pull into the garage, that he got hit twice in the same day by his own family?! Is it because he can’t hear as well, move as fast, eyes and brain are not so sharp?
Or has he lived enough life that he’s ready to cross that rainbow bridge?
He has trouble getting up the stairs, eats more slowly, and his eyes are getting weird and droopy. He has ‘doggy dementia’ and gets confused. Some days he sleeps a lot. We don’t go for nearly as many walks. Still, the vet says that because he is eating and drinking and seems to enjoy most days, it’s not his time yet. They try to assure me that when he’s ready to go, he will let me know.
Do you think napping under bumpers is his way of communicating?
