A Story of a Dog Named Nancy, A Tribute

This is a story of a dog named Nancy.

Pets are part of the family.

I recently lost my dog to devastating circumstances. I know that she was getting a bit old but, I expected that she'd live longer. To pay my respects, I would like to write a tribute to her for all the years she had showered me with love and joy.

I've always believed that pets are part of the family. My parents when I was growing up instilled that concept. When you adopt a pet,  whether it be canine, feline,  avian,  amphibian,  reptile, or aquatic,  you have given a solemn vow to take care of it, no matter the costs or situation. You can never un-adopt a pet. They don't ask for much anyway... Food,  water, a nice dry place to sleep,  a little care,  love, and devotion. In return, pets will give their masters everything... Even their own lives if they have to.

How I Came to Adopt a Brown Furry Dog I named Nancy 

Nancy after we took her home. We had to give her a haircut.
Image credit: The Tired Mama

Nancy was a dog we rescued from the streets of Fatima Guerrero in Davao City. We had just moved to a new house just outside the metro and was still in the process of filling the house up and making it into a home. We used to live in a small apartment in downtown Davao City. After a few years in that small apartment, we had finally made the big decision to purchase a house to start making a family. When we did move to our new house, we were one of the first people in our neighborhood. The subdivision that we had decided to relocate to was new. Unlike now, our subdivision is thriving and has a lot of incoming and outgoing traffic. Since the subdivision was new and people were starting to move in, some criminals thought it was profitable to break into homes and steal. Since we were the first on my street and had no neighbors, we were recommended to adopt a dog to guard our house when we would leave it.

We were actually deciding to purchase a dog since we had no one we knew who would allow us to adopt a dog. On that day, we were going through dog shops and was very surprised with expensive prices tagged on certain breeds. My partner said he will ask his friends if they knew of anyone who had pups that were up for adoption or would sell at a cheaper price. I consented and we went to one of his friend's house in Fatima, Davao City to see what he/they can do. That's when I met Nancy. 

Nancy was on her own. When she saw us setting up tables and chairs so we can drink a couple of beers, she excitedly scurried over. I was eating a slice of pizza and she sat down in front of me, wagging her tail and begging for scraps. I gave her some of my pizza crust, watched her swallow the whole thing without chewing and asked about the dog. My partner's friend said she had been "hanging around" the area for several days and apparently had no owner. My partner's friend said that he and his family had been waiting for either someone to claim the dog or the dog pound to snatch her up since she would always relieve herself in front of their home. He said it was quite irritating to clean up after a dog that clearly wasn't his. I asked if they fed her. He said sometimes. I also asked if they offered her any water because, at that time, Nancy was starting to lick the water dripping from the ice bucket. He also said no.

I felt bad for the dog since she was clearly hungry and thirsty. I decided to buy some barbecue and some soup ( so I can use the styrofoam bowl as her temporary dog dish) to feed her. After feeding her, I placed some water in the styrofoam bowl and she drank it all up. She then started to run around. I guess the food gave her some energy. After running around, she decided to take a nap beside me but, got up when I got up. I guess after a small amount of care, she became my number 1 fan.

I asked my partner's friend if I could bring her home with me since no one has gone to any lengths to find her. I promised I would give her a good home. Anyway, they knew I would because when my partner and I was living in our small apartment, I was feeding and taking care of some stray cats in the neighborhood. The friend said, " Go right ahead and take her home." I was happy. I get to adopt a dog that needs rescuing. I brought her home with me that very night. That day was March 15, 2010.

Looks like she's smiling.
Nancy
Image credit: The Tired Mama

The first few days, Nancy was clearly depressed. I guess she was used to the noise and the hustle and bustle of city life. My neighborhood was quiet...I guess, too quiet for her taste. She stayed in one corner just sleeping or laying with just her eyes moving.  I tried to comfort her and even used a nice juicy bone. It didn't cheer her up but made her move around a bit.  I knew that she just needed a bit of time to adjust. At least here in her new home, she didn't have to look for food or water. 

The first time we gave her a bath, she was infested with fleas and had bubble gum all over her nice brown fur. It angered me that people didn't throw their bubble gum properly, if not thought it was funny to stick bubble gum in her fur. We had to give her a shabby haircut to take all the bubble gum off. I checked her teeth and saw she still had her milk teeth. I deduced that she was either 4-6 months old. Still a pup.

At the beginning of our stay in our new place, I would go for a run around my neighborhood every afternoon.  When I would leave the house, I could hear her crying from a distance.  Since there wasn't a lot of vehicular traffic then,  I decided to take her with me for a walk to get my heart rate down after running.  At first, I tried putting a leash on her but she would lie on her back and wouldn't move.  Once I took it off she would go right side up again. I told her to follow me and she did, the whole entire time, stopping when I stopped and moving when I moved.  That became our daily afternoon routine just as long as it didn't rain. Nancy became very popular around the neighborhood because of those walks. People would come up to fawn over her.  It made me a very proud mama.

As the months passed, we were inseparable. I would brush her every day and she would fidget during the grooming.  I would always look for big bones to cook when I went to the supermarket.  I would always rush home to my Nancy.  Unfortunately, now, she isn't there to greet me when I come home anymore.

Nancy outside after being groomed. Image credit: The Tired Mama

A Short Summary of Nancy's Life

Nancy was well loved by our neighbors. She ran around and played with everyone. Sat with people who were out on the street partying. They would constantly ask if ever she would get pregnant that her pups be reserved for them to adopt.  When she did get pregnant by our neighbor's mixed pug breed, we were all on standby for the birth. Nancy's first birth was unexpectedly bad.  She did not behave with the usual maternal instincts and the whelping itself was like a disaster. We had built a dog house for the whelping and placed it at the back of the house in a quiet spot away from passers-by. We made sure that she had a safe and quiet place to "nest" right before she gave birth. Unfortunately, she gave birth all around the house as if she was "relieving herself" and left the pups still in their water bag. My partner and I basically had to do surgery and take the pups out of their water bags, dry them up, suck out any traces of mucus left in their nose, dry them up and cut their umbilical cord. The worse part was Nancy didn't want to nurse her pups and it was left for my partner and me to bottle feed. Nancy gave birth at night and I only had medicine droppers to feed the poor pups. I had to wait the next day so I can go to the pet store and buy bottles and milk. I didn't sleep at all that night.

Nancy apparently had no maternal instincts and is considered a "hysterical" and/or "bad" breeder. I nursed the 4 pups myself and they turned out healthy. Nancy's second pregnancy didn't go so well either- she gave birth prematurely and all her pups died. A month after that whelping crisis, I too gave birth prematurely to my daughter who passed away a day later. 

After my daughter's death and the death of the second litter of pups, I fell into depression. Nancy was there to help me along. I guess she sensed that I wasn't myself and tried to cheer me up any possible way she could. She did help me thrive. We helped each other. And since I was so adamant about making a family, I decided to adopt another dog, a Japanese Spitz mixed breed who I named Lucy. Of course, Nancy was not at all pleased about that. The first few weeks I had to shelter Lucy from Nancy. Lucy, on the other hand, is a good dog who understood her place in the pecking order. She never fought with Nancy and always gave way to her. As Lucy grew up (I adopted her when she was barely 2 months old), they became friends.

After a few months, I became pregnant again and this time I gave birth to a healthy boy at 36 months. Nancy and Lucy were there to keep me company at home since I was instructed to take it easy during my pregnancy and my partner didn't want me going out. When I brought my baby boy home, it was then that I started neglecting Nancy a bit because I had so much on my plate and was still trying to adjust to life as a primary caregiver of a screaming baby boy. After a month, I provided more time to my dogs to Nancy's delight. She welcomed having my attention again. I felt she knew that the new addition to the family needed a lot of my attention and forgave me for the neglect.

Nancy has been with me and my family and has guarded us, showered us with her loyalty and love, and has been a constant companion for so many years. She was family.

As my son grew up, he would always hear Nancy's name. Until now, he calls all our dogs ( I have another dog Mia, who is the daughter of Lucy, who I decided to keep) Nancy. Just a while ago I had to correct him and tell him that Nancy has passed away. He still insists on calling our other dogs, Nancy.

This past year you could tell that Nancy was getting old. She had vision problems due to cataracts which we tried to correct with medication. Her sight cleared slightly but, it wasn't the same since she bumped into things a lot. She didn't run around as much and if she did walk around, it was just for a bit and then she would go for a nap. I tried to make sure that she was always in our yard. I didn't want her getting lost or hurting herself. On the day she died, I made a faulty judgment call which I regret to this day.

The Day Nancy Died, March 28, 2018 (2 days before Good Friday)

Nancy, you will always be remembered. Image credit: The Tired Mama

1. My son goes out in the afternoons to play with his friends. He's at that age. I allow him to play outside so he can learn to socialize. He is an only child and kids, in general, learn more from their peers. That afternoon, right before the usual time for dinner, one of his playmates asked if they could come inside for a change and watch cartoons instead. One must note that not everyone has cable television in the Philippines. Feeling bad for my son's friends, I decided that they can come inside and enjoy an hour ( it was already 630 pm) of cartoons. Unfortunately, Nancy was lying in the doorway to the house. Instead of just walking around her, that friend who asked me permission to watch cartoons shooed Nancy away. I did see Nancy move but, I assumed to the back of the house. I was so busy trying to prepare for dinner and cater to my son's friends that I forgot all about closing our gate. At 7pm she was hit by a tricycle whose driver and passenger pick up pig's feed from houses around the neighborhood. Thirty minutes later she passed away. I was only able to pick her up and situate her inside our yard. I confronted the driver and passenger. They said they slowed down. BUT, it wasn't slow enough not to kill my dog. They could've just stopped and shooed her away. There wasn't any other vehicle around... just them. They didn't even say sorry and was very disrespectful. There was nothing I could do but, mourn the loss of my beloved dog Nancy. In my head, I was thinking, I shouldn't have allowed the kids to come in and watch cartoons... I should have remembered to close the gate and I should have kept a watchful eye...Nancy would still be alive. When routines change, sometimes the outcome is hard to accept. That evening, the food I prepared came out burnt.

I had Nancy for a short 8 years.

Lessons Learned

I emailed PAWS (Philippine Animal Welfare Society) and asked if a pet were to stray outside the house, is the pet's life at the mercy of a driver since there are no laws that prohibit a driver of a vehicle from hitting a pet or any animal for that matter. Of course, no response from PAWS. Laws do state about pet ownership and responsibility. On that note, I had failed as an owner to keep my dog safe. By law, I am guilty of failed pet responsibility. Lesson learned. It will never happen again. To Nancy, who did not deserve that, I AM TRULY AND DEEPLY SORRY. It was clearly my fault.

As for the driver who hit Nancy, they do not pass by our street anymore. They were said to come by regularly before but, now they skip our street. I think it's an admission of guilt. I have seen tricycles that have run over dogs...they speed up to knock the dog aside. Maybe they did that to Nancy. Or Nancy maybe didn't see them. But the driver could have stopped. And again by law, I can not do anything about it since Nancy was outside my yard. Why oh why didn't the driver just stop? She's family.

For Drivers

I would like to implore on your good nature to not hit animals. Laws regarding this are on your side but, have a little mercy. As my father taught us with regards to driving if an animal is in the middle of the road and there is no incident, stop for the animal. They are part of a family.

This is the story of a dog named Nancy.

For Nancy...
Image credit: Pixabay