Pepper Jax

Pepper Jax doing what he loves to do—he waits for somebody to come outside and then he runs or chases things and ends up being the center of attention. We love him a lot and he likes all of us but he really like any female or girl. I don't know what he would do if he ever saw a female dog up close. Patty had him fixed, and I didn't think he deserved that, but he is like a eunuch among the rest of the animals in the family.

Benji Lincoln

We got "Benji"  from the Montgomery County Animal Shelter in Dayton, Ohio.

Benji Lincoln

© By Abraham Lincoln

Benji Lincoln had to be put to sleep yesterday, the 12^th of October 1994. He has had a bad heart, which we knew about, and he had lost nearly all of his teeth. He could no longer hear and had some real problems in seeing. His heart caused him to have a cough for the past year or two. It got worse on Tuesday, and he coughed nearly all day and all night. Becky, myself and mom (Patty) held him during the day and at night. He was having difficulty in breathing and on Wednesday we called the vet and made an appointment to have him put to sleep.

Mom took him over and went in with him to comfort him while the vet put him asleep. Then he came back after a few minutes and finished the task. Pat brought him back home and we buried him close to the garden in a place where he used to run in circles around the yard; and he is laying next to Cuddles.

We all told him “good-bye” before he went, and he was in so much discomfort that I knew he wanted to get some relief. I have no idea if there is a place for animals in the hereafter, but I am comforted in believing that Benji is with Cuddles, Puppy and finally met are Toy Fox Terrier, Autumn Eve Lincoln.

Benji was an excellent dog all the time we had him. He made some messes on the floor now and then but all dogs do that. He was a poor little puppy that Pat picked out at the animal shelter in Dayton. He was a mess, in a cage, with long legs that wobbled when we stood him on the floor. Pat said she wanted “this dog” even if the rest of us didn’t. The attendant came out and said, “Oh, you picked, ‘Smiley’.” It is true, for years afterward, he would smile, like a person smiles and show his front teeth.

Benji had a bouncing walk like no other dog I have seen before or since. This bouncing walk was especially prominent just after he used the bathroom outside. He knew he would get a treat when he came inside, and he bounced all the way into the house. He was happy indeed!

Benji was 16 years old when he was put to sleep. He was our friend and we loved him dearly.  His new friend and our newest dog, Autumn, misses him too. Since Autumn is now gone too, we have another animal shelter dog, Pepper Jax, that we got from the Darke County Animal Shelter.

Now, these many years later, it is time to remember Autumn Eve, the Toy Fox Terrier that we got just before Benji died. They did get to know each other and they played together before Benji was put down. It was a sad day when Autumn came to the end of the road and had to be put down, and I cried like a baby.

Now we have Pepper Jax, a Jack Russell Terrier, and another animal shelter dog — he is a great addition to our family.  It is hard to image that one of these days we may have to have him put to sleep.

Autumn Eve Lincoln

Autumn Eve Lincoln

Our Dogs
© By Abraham Lincoln

Our favorite dogs are buried here where we live. Cuddles was an old lady when she had to be put down because of arthritis and the pain she endured from it. She was 22 in human years and the oldest dog that Clayton Animal Care had ever cared for at that time. Cuddles was “family.” I often wonder if there is a Heaven for Animals and believe there must be.

Tiger is buried here. He was supposed to be a Toy Fox Terrier but ended up being a Jack Russell Terrier. Tiger was the smartest dog we ever had and knew what 47 human words meant. He could distinguish between a yellow sock and a red sock or a red ball and a blue ball. He listened to you speak and would go and get what you sent him for.

Benji (Benjamin) is buried here too. He was rescued from the animal shelter in Dayton and my mom said, "He is so ugly only his mother could love him." Benji stole our hearts and was a wonderful small Benji-type mixed dog. He loved to run and ran around our yard daily until he nearly exhausted himself. He wore a trail around the yard that he ran on like it was a racetrack. The neighbors encouraged him on yelling, “Go Benji, Go!”

Puppy is buried here. She wasn't much older than a small puppy would be but had suffered a badly broken leg and was taken to the animal hospital by our daughter, Melinda. She came home and we cared for her. Puppy was a sweetheart and Cuddles and Tiger both fell in love with her. They were all pals together and lay in the sunny spots together and had a good life together but her broken leg with the steel brace hurt as pieces of bone began to work-out. She cried in pain. The vets could not get the pieces of bone out and we had to put her to sleep.

Patty drove to New Lebanon on a stormy night and brought home a tiny puppy that we called “Autumn Eve” (shown above) because it was in the Fall when we got her and it was in the evening. She was a tiny dog and we assumed she would not get very big. Autumn was a Toy Fox Terrier and had perfect, heart-shaped ears that were always perked up. She went blind and suffered from arthritis and had to be put to sleep.

We stopped at the Darke County Animal Shelter in 2011 and picked up a small Jack Russell Terrier. He was covered with small black and brown spots. I mentioned that he looked like somebody had sprinkled him with pepper. After two baths and visits to the local vet, our Darke County dog was named, “Pepper Jax,” and he came house broken and that was a big plus to us.

Pepper Jax still likes to be out of doors and he still runs like the wind. I think he could outrun Benji on a race around the yard but Benji would do it for several minutes at a time. Pepper Jax does it once and if he doesn’t catch a bird that is fleeing a bush he seems a bit disappointed. Yes, he has actually caught two birds he flushed out of boxwood bushes.

Cuddles Lincoln

Cuddles—

Cuddles was an old lady when she had to be put down because of arthritis and the pain she endured from it. She was 22 in human years and the oldest dog that Clayton Animal Care had ever cared for at that time. She came from Denise Sabo who was a student of mine over in Greene County when I taught there—Cuddles was “family.” I often wonder if there is a Heaven for Animals and believe there must be for something as special as these dogs have been to mankind from the earliest times.

Lincoln Clan

The Lincoln Clan—
Living with Lincoln has not been like "living high on the hog." We are the poor folks in the Lincoln Clan and for whatever reason we have stayed there. I was, since my earliest recollections, wanting to have those things my friends and neighbors seemed to have and took for granted it was their due. If they wanted for anything it was not apparent. They seemed to eat better than we did and they always had money to spend on things we seldom had. I don't know who makes the choices as to where we are born or if we get to pick and choose our parents but knowing now what I went through to get to where I am I could have made better choices.