Bye Buddy!

This is kind of a hard subject to talk about. We have had Buddy since he was a puppy (he's 5 yrs. old now). For years we have talked about giving Buddy to another home. We love him but with our growing family and lifestyle I always feel guilty that he's outside all the time. I didn't like that I couldn't just let my kids out in the backyard with him (with out my supervision). He's very sweet but HUGE. And he doesn't really know his own strength. So I felt like I had to constantly watch him around the kids to make sure he didn't accidentally knock them over or step on them. So this last week we just happened to meet someone very interested in adopting Buddy. It happened really fast. Tuesday, March 15th (yes the day I went into labor with Callie) they came to pick him up.

When we first told Mason that Buddy was going to a new home he had a total melt down crying and saying, "I don't want Buddy to go away! He's my dog. I love him. Look mom Buddy's sad he wants to stay here." Noah never seemed too upset with our conversations about Buddy moving to California and living on a big farm.
Tuesday at 6:30am they came to get Buddy. I made sure the boys got some play time with Buddy before they came. Mason was a little sad but by now I think he'd accepted the fact that Buddy was going away. Noah was just swinging on his swing as usual. When the new owners started to put the leash on Buddy this was Noah's response:
I was shocked. He full on broke down and was crying, "No! That's my dog. I don't want Buddy to go!" It was really sad. I was surprised because even though I know that Noah has always loved Buddy it was usually from a distance or through the sliding glass door. Mason on the other hand was very quiet as the new owners took Buddy out to their car. Once Buddy was in the back of the car we told Mason to say his last good bye and at this point he said "bye Buddy" with a soft voice choked up trying to hold back his tears. It was very sad to see Buddy go but I think it's for the best. Especially for Buddy's sake. He's going to a home with owners who have more time and resources for him.

He looked so sad and confused in the back of their vehicle.

Good-bye Buddy. We're going to miss you!

Some of Buddy's good qualities:

He was very good with other dogs. Very friendly. At the dog park he would "hang out" with the great danes. Probably because he was practically their size.

He also almost NEVER barks! Definitely a great quality. Even on walks when other dogs would go crazy and bark at us Buddy was always calm and never bark back.

Even though he was a high energy dog he was very good around kids. Or as good as a dog his size could be. (You just had to watch out for his tail, feet or any sudden turns!)

I HATE this picture of me but it shows just how sweet and gentle he could be. He was a very loving and protective dog. When I was pregnant with Mason we would take Buddy to the dog park and he was always very protective of me making sure other dogs did not come around me. He always had to be between me and any other dog that came close and if they came too close he would snarl at them. He didn't always do that, just when I was pregnant. I loved taking him on my jogs (he'd jog up to 5 or 6 miles with me). I felt very safe no matter what time of day it was. Who was going to mess with me when Buddy was around?!

Some of his "imperfections":

He was always getting into something. I couldn't keep ANY food out on the counter. So, I guess it was a good thing cuz I had to have a clean kitchen.

He was very playful but as he grew this became something to watch out for. He would often jump on you to play... not too fun when you're pregnant or just in general.

The new owners sent us this picture. I guess they left their car door open and Buddy just climbed right in! Ha if you knew Buddy you'd be shocked at this. I love all 120lbs. of him but... the dumb dog NEVER got into the car on his own. You always had to lift him up into the car. For a dog of his size and capability you'd thinking getting in and out of a vehicle would be pretty easy. Even my little hyundai accent he wouldn't just step in.