My life with Isis

After two aggressive and failed attempts at adopting a forever dog into our home, we decided to get professional help. We found a website, I believe it was run by Purina, and it allowed you to enter criteria that would allow a search for the perfect breed to suit your family. The only criteria we entered was 'good with children.' The Keeshond was the first breed to be listed and I immediately started to keep my eyes peeled for a breeder in Florida where we resided.

It was Christmas time and Santa had left a dog certificate in the stocking of each of our young sons. It was good for one dog, to be redeemed once we found a fit for our family. It didn't take long! In January, we saw a classified add for a keeshond while staying at my moms house in St. Pete. We called and made an appointment to go and look at the puppies that were available. My husband was working so it was just me and the boys, Jordan 4 1/2 and Christian 22 months. We drove a long way down unfamiliar roads with a red leash waiting to pick up our puppy.

We turned into the drive off of a desolate, tree-lined state road and found that it was a farm, of sorts. We heard the barking as soon as we pulled up. The woman had one breeding pair of keeshonds on her property the others were huskys.  The male keeshond was large...probably 50 pounds. He was in a pen barking incessantly. I was relieved that the female was much smaller, in a separate penned in area and she was tied to a rock by a long tether. The owner explained that as people were coming to pick up her pups, she was jumping out of the pen.

The woman led me and the boys into her house to were we met Isis. Her daughter had named all the pups, each litter with a different theme. Isis's litter was named after Egyptian gods.  Isis was a 12 week old ball of fur. Super soft and so cute, we fell in love immediately! After asking lots of questions, taking care of the paperwork and giving the woman a check for $350, I put the leash on her thinking we'd just walk to the car. She had no idea what to do and I had to carry her there and place her in the front seat. She was a little nervous but behaved very well during the 60 minute drive home.

We had already prepared our house for our new member with bowls and food and toys and a crate. The boys were thrilled. Jordan kept on picking her up and carrying her around the living room even though she was already half the size of him. We mulled over changing her name as we weren't that into Egyptian mythology, but Isis suited her, so we kept it.

  

We read up on how to train a puppy and she was a quick learner. We hung a bell by the door and rang it each time we took her out. She started ringing the bell on her own in no time. We also taught her to sit and shake hands. She was wonderful with the boys although never liked to play. She'd watch the ball you just threw role past her and then look back at you as if to say "What? Did you want me to do something with that?"

For a brief moment my husband thought we shouldn't have her spayed but look into breeding her ourselves because she was 'so beautiful.' And yes she was, but after researching the commitment this process takes, we gladly decided to have her fixed. Alas, her first heat had started. I was measuring it against the human version since I had no experience with the canine one. One week start to finish, this wont be too bad, I thought. Boy was I wrong! She was confined to the laundry room during this time since any doggie diaper I tried to get her to wear wouldn't stay on. Not too mention her musty odor could make paint peel! That was the longest 6 weeks ever! We took her to be fixed the minute she was done.

We had friends at the time who got a kick out of her name and nicknamed her Isis on the Buses. They had both worked in the cruise ship industry and during the land excursions a tour guide would always announce 'No Ices on the Buses!'  Of course he was talking about Italian Ices. But we thought it was a funny story and her nickname stuck too.

We moved from Orlando to Clermont late 2000. She was full grown at this point, weighing 30 pounds. We would walk her around the neighborhood and she'd pull us on the leash. I heard the 'Whose walking who?" joke too many times to count. She is in the Spitz family of dogs so sled dogs are in her lineage and she would pull the boys on their scooters. Once we had the yard fenced, she was able to roam free, and straight to the left hand corner where she'd go nuts on the dog on the other side of the fence. She hated that dog. I had to spray her with the hose just to divert her attention from trying to scratch her way through the fence. After a few sprays, I only had to go out and yell 'Hose!' for her to stop!

While in Clermont, we were adopted by a black cat that the boys named Pumpkin. Oddly named black cat? Well she started coming around our house during Halloween, it's the logic of a 7 year old. Pumpkin stayed outside since both Jordan and I were allergic. But she would sit on the window sill and drive poor Isis crazy. She wanted so badly to get that cat, even though I'm confident that she wouldn't have known what to do with her if she ever caught her.

She also had the annoying habit of darting out the front door. She had us scared a few times as we drove around the neighborhood calling for her. We lived right off of a busy road and always feared the worst. On one occasion I chased her on foot through the neighborhood calling her name. She would stop and look back to see if I was following and then take off before I got too close. I finally said 'Forget it' and turned to walk home, of course she gave up the game and followed me.  She did love riding in the car though, so whenever she darted out, we'd run and open the car door and she'd jump in. After a while she'd just dart straight to the car and wait.

January 2006 we made another intrastate move to Ocala. Our house was two stories on 3/4 acre of property. When we first brought her home, we all went upstairs and called to her from the loft. It was funny to watch her spinning around trying to find us. She finally figured it out and ran up the stairs. She slept at the foot of our bed at night and was always alert. She'd start barking before my husband even drove up the driveway.

Boy did she love that yard and would stay out for hours. She would dig a hole in the corner of the fence and lay in it keeping cool during the hot summer months. But I think she loved when it cooled down better. It was hard to get her to come in. "Treat!" we'd call and then she'd finally relent and come inside.

Pumpkin was killed by a car while we were away one weekend. Our neighbor buried her under a tree. We saw phantom Pumpkins for a while. I don't think Isis missed her much but we did and decided to fill this void with a small dog. We found an add for an 'oops' litter and brought home Yoohoo, the schweenie, that day. She was so tiny she fit in my slipper. Isis tolerated Yoohoo who would be jumping in her face trying to get her to engage. But Isis wasn't the playing type and would ignore her until she had enough and then snap and bark at her.

Isis and her cousin Dexter

I found out I was pregnant the summer of 2009. I was a little worried about how our aging Isis was going to handle the change.  She had been getting a little ornery in her old age. I remember one night I got up to use the bathroom and tripped over her on the floor at the foot of our bed. She must have been startled and she growled and bit my butt! Another incident that caused us concern was when she did the same thing to our niece who was maybe 2 at the time.

Kaleb was born in 2010 and Isis did fine. Until he began getting mobile. She did snap at him a few times as he toddled by her and accidentally got too close or stepped on her toe. We let her know that this was not ok, we didn't care how old she was. We kept careful watch hoping we wouldn't need to find her a new home. She minded her manners and Kaleb kept a wide girth.

In May of 2011 we made the cross country move to San Diego. Isis was 11 1/2 and did a great job being squished between suitcases and coolers during the 5 day 4 night road trip. We have no yard to speak of so we'd walk around the block or take them both to dog beach where they could run free. She stayed away from the water but loved visiting other people on the beach. Yoohoo didn't like to get too far away from us, she's pretty tiny but she did feel safe when she was near Isis.

Her hearing went first. We'd call her name and she didn't even turn her head. She'd start barking at the door only when she saw Yoohoo doing it. One day she was outside and I was calling her in but her back was turned to me. Yoohoo ran over to get her attention and basically led her in the house.

Then she became incontinent and started urinating in the house. This got pretty annoying as we were cleaning up pee daily. Her eating habits weren't the best and she had trouble keeping food down. We knew her time was almost up.

On Sunday, Jan 13th we went to church as usual. When we got back she was sitting in the sun on the back steps. She seemed ok so we left her alone figuring she'd bark or scratch to come in like she always had. A few hours passed and I was going to take Kaleb for a walk. It was then that I found Isis had slipped between the steps and the fence and couldn't get up. I don't know how long she was like this. I tried to prop her on her hind legs but they wouldn't support her weight. I carried her and her blanket inside and laid her in the kitchen. I knew she'd be gone before the next morning. I brushed her and spent some time with her telling her it was ok. She managed to get up very shakily and move to her favorite spot under the table where she then died. Christian was with her and he came to me as I was getting Kaleb ready for bed. "I think Isis just died, I thought she was going to vomit but then she made a weird noise and now she's not breathing." I ran down and confirmed. Isis was gone.

Her last car ride wasn't much like her first. Although she was carried in both times, today she was cold and stiff and wrapped in a plastic bag. "You don't have to come," my husband said. But I did have to. I had to see her off to her next destination. She will be cremated with other pets who've passed, their ashes spread in the ocean.

The Rainbow Bridge...where I hope to meet her again someday.