Monday, March 17, 2014

The Hoss Dog

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Today is a special day because not only is it one of the few days of the year I wear green, but it is also my family's beloved dog's birthday. Sadly, we had to put him down last April but today he would have turned 16. In honor of this wonderful dog, who truly was a member of the family, I'm sharing 16 of my favorite stories from his life. I've included some adorable pictures for you to enjoy as well :)

1. When Hoss was a puppy, he would play with tennis balls and often get them stuck in his mouth. We would then have to carefully extract them from his mouth without accidentally pulling out his teeny teeth.




He was the cutest puppy ever. 

2. Hoss was not a fan of taking pills (who is?) so we would often slather some cream cheese or peanut butter on his pills then give them to him, camouflaged. This worked maybe twice before Hoss figured out he could lick the good stuff off in his mouth then spit out the pill. Which he did.

3. Hoss was not allowed downstairs in our basement (although toward the end of his life we just let him do whatever he wanted). Sometimes he would try and sneak down though. When we would look over at him trying to get down the stairs, he would instantly stretch and groan to make it look like he was simply using the stairs to stretch out his legs. Which was a dirty lie.

Husband refused to use the "smitten" (heart shaped mitten designed for couples) so I made Hoss use it with me.

4. Most mornings, Hoss would come bounding into my room, doing his little happy dance, sneeze in my face to make sure I was awake, and then run back down the stairs. While it was kind of a gross ritual, I'd give anything to wake up like that again.


Hoss decided to become part of the decorations for my graduation party. 

5. Whenever we would come home and walk into the house, Hoss would lift up his upper lip and literally smile at us. It was the best thing in the world and was sure to put me in a better mood, no matter what.


Hoss had quite the collection of toys.

6. Hoss's favorite cookie was ginger snaps. Would you like to know how we figured this out? We left a tray on the counter and went out for a bit. When we came back, they were all gone.





"Mom, why did you let them put this hat on me?" 

7. Hoss would kick my former boyfriend whenever he came into the house. Turns out he was a pretty good judge of character, because he never kicked Husband :)



Two of my favorite men. And yes Hoss had just had a drink from his cup of punch. 

8. Every year for Christmas, Hoss would receive a stuffed toy of some kind. The most popular ones were always the pheasants. He would methodically first remove the squeaker from it, then yank off the feet, then slowly dismember the wings, neck, etc. for the following months. Then we would get him a new one.


 Hoss receiving a penguin for Christmas. He was a bit confused at first. 

9. Hoss would often try to hop up on my bed (and everyone else's), which was always a dangerous thing to let him do because while he was "asleep", he would stretch out his legs thus pushing you out of the bed. But sometimes I couldn't resist and would let him hop up anyway.


10. Hoss loved car rides. All you had to say was "Do you want to go for a car ride?" and he would freak out and start running/jumping around the house. Then we'd open the garage door and hit the button to open the car door on our van and he would bound in with a pure look of joy on his face. He was quite the joy-rider.




My handsome brother with his handsome best friend.

11. Hoss was spoiled in every sense of the word. We would always bring him a scoop of vanilla ice cream whenever we went to our favorite ice cream place and we would hold it on the ground for him to lick completely clean.


Sometimes I think he ate better than I did. 

12. Hoss also liked eggs. One day, my mom and I had made deviled eggs for a party and left 8 in the fridge for the family to eat later when we were back. When we returned home, only 2 deviled eggs remained. I asked my dad what had happened to them and he replied that Hoss REALLY liked deviled eggs.


Yup, he did eat better than me. 

13. I can't even begin to count the number of hours I spent in our chair in the family room, watching TV, doing homework, reading, etc. with Hoss sitting on my lap. There was hardly anything else better than that dog asleep, snoring, on your legs. Despite how uncomfortable it sometimes was.





Hoss in his official chair, complete with a knit blanket with his face on it. 

14. Hoss also loved to go on runs with my dad. After he turned 13 or so, he couldn't run as far as he used to, but he still wanted desperately to go. So after my dad and Hoss had run for a couple miles, I would drive over and pick up Hoss at the park and take him home. I would open up all the windows while we went home and let him rejoice in the various smells we drove past.


While packing for college, Hoss would lay in my closet so I wouldn't forget to bring him along with my clothes. 

15. One of Hoss's favorite things was to have his tummy rubbed. He would roll over on his back and make sure that you didn't pass him without first giving him some love.




Hoss being mischievous. He was never allowed on this couch, but we found him here one day.

16. Hoss didn't always realize that he weighed 65 pounds. In his head, he was still about 2.5 pounds. This would prompt him to attempt to get on my lap while I was sitting at the kitchen table. It never worked terribly well, but it did make me feel pretty loved.

Even though it's been nearly a year since we had to say goodbye, I still have my sad moments. He was truly the best dog in the world and enriched our lives beyond measure. He taught me how to love unconditionally and to always be happy. I'd give anything to have him back, but I take comfort in knowing someday I'll see him again.

Happy Birthday, Hoss Dog. Eat some ice cream for me up there :)



Excited That: I'm going to Chicago on Wednesday!
About to Make: Tofu and sweet potato tacos with apple mango salsa.
Wishing That: It was about 20 degrees warmer.
Bit By: The Spring Cleaning Bug.
Days Until Christmas: 282

1 comment :

  1. I still get questions about why Jesus had to take Hoss away. My favorite memories of Hoss are that he would tolerate sitting next to Boy #2, as he ate his snacks, because my boy would drop them and Hoss would eat them. I also loved getting his smiles. Hoss loved the boys because they loved to give him treats. So Hoss loved to see them come. Hoss was a very good dog.

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