Sherlock Tasha (2/16/97 - 12/18/09)

The LeClerc family lost an important member today.

This morning when I was letting the dogs out, I noticed that Tasha's back legs were not holding her up and she was having difficulty walking. I had noticed something similar last night, but she seemed okay when she went to bed.

I took her to the Vet this morning and the doctor gave me the options. He wasn't completely sure, but he said she probably had a tumor on her spine that was cutting off the nerves making it impossible for her to use her legs. He said that he could give her a shot and put her on some stronger pain medication, but he wasn't sure it would work and her legs would probably not recover. He said that at best she had several months left before she wouldn't be able to function at all. When I asked him if he thought I should euthanize her, he said that he couldn't make the recommendation, but that it would probably be the kindest thing to do for her. Making that choice was probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do.

Our main concern now is how Pilgrim will handle it. We hope to be able to spend more time with him and make him more of an inside dog.

It didn't help that I watched most of Marley and Me a couple of days ago. I stopped at the part where he really gets sick because some guests came, and now I'm pretty sure I won't ever be able to watch it.

I remember when Tasha when born. We called her Bertha because she was much bigger than most of the other puppies in the litter. Dad decided to keep her and we realized how great she was. Her ability to open gates and figure things out led to her being named Sherlock Tasha.

When I was home for ROTC, I would go out running with her along the bike path and she was so good at staying right beside me. We'd go climb Sleeping Giant (a "mountain" in Connecticut) and play fetch at Quinnipiac also. I can remember looking at all of my dad's dogs barking and carrying on, and Tasha just stood in the middle with that "What is wrong with them?" look.

We brought her to Tulsa in winter 2005 to help keep our new puppy Pilgrim company and hopefully train him. It didn't really work.

A couple of years ago, we were in Tahlequah and Tasha went missing. We searched and searched and couldn't find her. We were just about to give up, fearing that she had gone off to..well you know, but we decided to go out searching one more time with no luck. When we got back, she was just sitting in front of the garage like nothing had ever happened.

I know she meant a lot to a lot of people, so if you have anything to add, please do. She lived a good long life, but she'll be missed.