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Jenny was born May 16, 1998. An English Springer Spaniel, Liver & White, AKA. My son, daughter and I found this beautiful, gentle natured puppy after looking at so many that wanted a new family to call their own. She was such a great dog to us. She loved the kids and their friends, loved to walk in the park, yard and at camp. She was afraid of water and car sick when young but, out grew both. She loved to swim in our pool, she would run around and around the pool deck and then jump in. We had to be careful in watching her and help her out when she tired. She loved her bath too, she knew how to shake her body when in the shower before I would let her out. "You have to shake Jenny." and we would dance to music too. First she would stand and we would dance, older I had to lift her up in my arms and sing as we danced. She liked to travel with me when I was able to take her with me. Sometimes I couldn't take her but, she was so happy when I came home. Sometimes she had panic attacks and chewed papers in the bathrooms. We tried shutting doors when we went out for the day. She also loved chocolate and we could NEVER leave chocolate out anywhere, not even on the kitchen counter, she would find a way to get it, and not good for dogs. I found this out from a soccer coach. We had our entire team chocolate bars. I had them divided in bags 15 bars each for 14 players in a large cardboard box on the kitchen floor. When we got home almost all bars were eaten but, the wrappers, plastic bags, foil, almonds and a very sick dog on the family room rug. What a night, Jenny slept outside with lots of water, which she drank. Good thing that was the filtering agent for her, fed her in the morning some, she survived but, what a mess we had and we had to pay for all the bars ourselves. One Easter we left a bag of peanut butter cups on top of the counter after we each took one and left for church. When we got home the bag was turned inside out, all was eaten but for pink and green foils on the floor. Jenny loved chocolate. Every spring and late fall she got a hair cut, shaved all but her ears. Her hair dresser always put bows in her ears which everyone loved when they saw her. She would go after tennis balls and Frisbees but as she got older she would go after them but not bring them back. She knew how to sit, lay and speak on command. She would walk behind me as I mowed a large yard with a walk behind mower, as she aged she would walk for a while, then rest on the edge, move as close as she could to the area I was mowing. I will never forget a day at camp, my daughter walked Jenny on her leash and I was riding my bike. My daughter said mom I don't want to walk Jenny anymore and handed me the leach. I told her I was on a bike. I put the leash around my right wrist and peddled my bike back to camp,Jenny running along side, all seemed well and she was in a full run. She stopped so fast to go to the bathroom and I didn't. I flipped over my bike, my wrist hit the handle bar as I landed in a poof of road dust. Jenny ran on as I tried to get up. My neighbor saw me, darn, asked if I was OK, I just wanted to know where Jenny went. "She's there waiting at the door." My neighbor said. I tore the tendon in my right wrist, had surgery to repair it, so it has been my "Jenny scar". I will always have it and laugh when I think about it. Every summer she would eat the pea shells after I ate the peas when weeding the garden, she loved lettuce, cucumbers, grapefruit section skins, apples,nuts and of course meat scraps and maybe a tiny piece of chocolate once in a while I am an insulin dependent diabetic since age six and always deal with low or high blood sugar, constant work for me keep normal range. Jenny somehow knew a lot of the time that I wasn't right. If I was working outside for a long time, she would come bark at me and walk to the door, and keep at it til I came. She seemed to know I needed to go inside, and after I was in I would realize my blood sugar was so very low. I feel she knew. Many mornings she would come as close as she could to my face, bark a light bark, sometimes lick my hands or face and continue to bark to wake me up,I feel she saved my life many times so I could get up to help myself. Jenny would always look at me with this special look all the time. My mom called them soulful eyes. She always would be there right under my feet, watching my every move, following me from room to room as I did house work through the day. I wonder if she was given to me to be a gentle soul in my life after dealing with such difficult times. I could talk all day to her and she never minded or I could be silent all day and she was by my side. I miss her so very much. These last couple years it was Jenny and I alone a lot, she was my dear friend, Arthritis was effecting her hips, but she still walked with me for short walks in the woods and around the house. This last winter she was put on incontinence medicine for she was having accidents. Through the winter she seemed to be loosing her hair on her back. I took her to the vet March through April, she had many tests and I was told she had Cushing's disease, an enlarged liver and heart. I was given a new medicine that should help her unless she had a tumor. So I gave Jenny all my attention, cooked her all home made food. She had a stroke a Sunday afternoon and I carried her a long ways into the house,she took water from a water bottle but was difficult for her tongue was in the way. I kept petting her and talking to her and giving her water. She seemed better that evening but weak. I called the vet about what happened and was told to change medicine dose, and may need a counter acting medicine. It was so heart wrenching to see her suffer. I told her she was a beautiful dog, a loyal friend and that it was OK to go, I would miss her dearly but she brought such joy to me. I prayed for God to take her, as she didn't deserve to suffer anymore. She turned 13 years old May 16 and we celebrated, then 13 days later we were outside getting the pool ready for the summer, Jenny seemed happy to go out with us, she laid in the cool grass as my son and I worked. I walked up to see how she was and I knew she had passed. She was happy, she had us there. My beautiful Jenny died Sunday May 29, 2011 -day before Memorial Day. Annette Ryan ~ November 1, 2011 ~~~~~ A Beautiful Poem ~~~~~
From time to time, people tell me, "lighten up, it's just a dog," They don't understand the distance traveled, the time spent, Some of my proudest moments have come about with "just a dog." Many hours have passed and my only company was "just a dog," Some of my saddest moments have been brought about by If you, too, think it's "just a dog," then you probably understand "Just a dog" brings into my life the very essence of friendship, So for me and folks like me, it's not "just a dog" "Just a dog" brings out what's good in me and diverts my thoughts I hope that someday they can understand that its' not "just a dog" So the next time you hear the phrase "just a dog," ~Unknown Author~ This is a comment from Jenny's Grandmother about what Jenny meant "Jenny was my daughter Annette's dog and she could tell when my daughter
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