I have to admit, this one took me a little while just to be able to write. As you may have seen, a couple weeks ago we lost a beloved member of the Johnston family – miss Dixie dog made her way to Rainbow Bridge after a steady decline over the past few months. It definitely hit me harder than I was anticipating, and I found myself crying the whole way through this post the first few times I sat down to write it.
Dixie made her first appearance on Bright Side Outdoors the day I started the blog. The only dog I had ever hunted with, Dixie was a staple in our lives. My family had only had small dogs before her, and although I certainly had a bigger dog of my own (who could forget this big goober) I always called her my “big dog” or “big lady dog”. And she was certainly a lady! The ceaseless harassment by Prine, Angus, and Tipsy never seemed to get to her – their incessant sniffing and pestering would have driven most dogs crazy, or resulted in some sort of bite or a brawl. Not the big lady! Minimal growling, and usually an attitude of “Well, I guess this is happening… When I get sick of it I’ll just go to the other room.”
Apparently Prine could keep a better watch on the pond if he had Dixie to snuggle up against
Never overly excited, always calm and patient and gentle – with the exception of hunting. As soon as we got in the dove field or the duck blind, a light switch flipped and she was an incredibly intense and watchful hunter – eyes always to the sky.
Once, on a particularly slow dove hunt, I watched her keep a keen eye on a hawk flying around at one end of the field for nearly an hour. She knew it was a bird in the air and didn’t want to miss out on a retrieve in the event that we knocked it down. Of course, she wouldn’t have understood that a hawk in a dove are not quiiiite the same, but I always remember that hunt as an excellent example of her desire and drive as a hunting dog.
Since we first got her when I was a kid, and all the way until she really was too old to hunt, as soon as she saw my dad bring out his camouflage to prepare for a hunt she would make her way out to his Tahoe and jump in the back. It didn’t matter if he was leaving in 10 minutes or 2 hours, there she would be – waiting in her spot in the back of his truck. That was her spot no matter where he was driving, the office or the dove field.
Sometimes, when it was just too hot to bring a dog on a dove hunt, or too cold on a duck hunt for it to be safe, we would leave Dixie at home. We knew it was for her own good, but that didn’t stop her from being completely put out with my dad! It was really pretty funny to see how grumpy she would get when she knew she was missing out on a hunt. I’ve got to admit I would (and probably do) do the exact same thing!
We may have lost some good dogs over the past few years, but I know they are all together in heaven on an endless bird hunt, equipped with soccer balls, tennis balls, belly rubs, and all the dog treats they could ever want!
Love you, Big Lady Dog.