Indy was a crazy, unique dog. Maybe most people would say that about their pets but if you ever had the privilege of meeting Indy, you'd know it to be true.
I had been searching the Internet for a couple weeks, looking on Petfinder and the local Mountain Home shelter for a dog for our family. While Dh was out of town one week, I saw a picture of a gorgeous yellow lab in a shelter in Boise and decided I needed to meet him. I drove the hour drive and took one look at him and said, "He's my dog."I paid $23.50 and he was mine. A couple days later, Oct 2, 2006 to be exact, I got to take him home. He was laid back and oh so sweet. He had no idea how to jump on our bed, but I soon taught him. He slept with me that night and kept me warm.
Indy proved to be, what I termed, a "high needs dog" and the reason he was so sweet that night I took him home was because he was drugged from being neutered. I should have known! He needed some obedience training in the worst way so I signed him up for a basic once weekly class in Boise. Let's just say, we both learned a lot about each other. Indy was made the example for most of the training lessons and when it came time for graduation day, Indy was so obnoxious we were asked to sit in another room so he wouldn't bother the other dogs. Yikes! That very day we signed up for PRIVATE obedience classes.
Indy could be compared to Marley from the Marley and Me book. Spitting image actually. Characteristics exactly the same. He was stubborn and strong. So strong that making him do anything he didn't want to do was nearly impossible because he would use his entire body weight against me. He would climb up in my lap (he was 80+ lbs by the way) EVERY SINGLE TIME I was on the phone to try and get my attention and when I would try to get him off me, well, he wouldn't budge.
He also loved his food. He would not go outside before he ate his morning meal and then would irritate me until I fed him his dinner. I would usually cave in around 2pm because I just couldn't stand it anymore but he'd always leave me alone as soon as he got what he wanted. His favorite was bread (and butter later in his life...he'd do just about anything if he saw some). If a sandwich just happened to be left on the counter a little too long according to Indy standards, he would jump up and steal the bread but leave the meat and cheese! He once ate an entire loaf of bread that I had thrown away...too bad it was moldy and the vet had to induce vomiting. Oh Indy...
There were several times when I would look him in the eyes and tell him that I was going to sell him but that no one would buy him so I'd have to give him away. While he was probably the most annoying dog on the planet (getting in the trash EVERY TIME we left it out on accident or when he would try to "rescue" us from the pool or just stand there and bark NON stop until we got out), he was loving, always trying to please me, and worshiped the ground I walked on. He would almost never leave my side when I was home. When I showered, he would wait for me on the bathmat, watching me the entire time. Dh said that he would pace and check every room for me when I wasn't home. When I had my wisdom teeth complications, had the LAP for endo, extreme morning sickness, and my broken pelvis, Indy never left me. He would stretch out on the bed with me for as long as I was there (and during that time, I was in bed most of the day).
While I wouldn't say he was the most gentle dog (his tail could be considered a lethal weapon and could take out small children...skittle included) he had a big heart and loved everyone. Well, everyone except the men who put in sod in our yard in Idaho. That was the first and only time I had heard Indy growl at a human.
I wish I could go on and on about Indy and his silly stories and quirks (and trust me, he had MANY...just ask about how he pulled me into a lake or how he loved to steal my towels and bathmats just to make me chase him) but I'm sure you all don't want to read for days. I deeply loved that insane dog and I think he loved me that much too. He was my first baby and I thought he'd get to see Skittle grow up. I thought we had much more time with him.
Thank you to all the people gave us well wishes after we had to put him to sleep Nov 1. My heart still hurts and we miss him so, so much. It's too quiet around here without him. It's just not the same. There's no barking when a doorbell rings on TV, no horse head banging repeatedly into the back door, there's no tail sweeping the hand towels off my oven handle, and no more cuddles at night before DH comes to bed. My heart is forever changed because he lived and because he died.
(This picture is just to show how he never wanted to be away from me. I was looking back at my pregnancy pictures and Indy was in almost every single one.)
