Remembering Max...

This is our last picture of Max. I stole if from Liisa's facebook page. Max lost his battle with Pancreatic cancer this morning. Liisa and Jesse sat by his side as he went to sleep, and my heart sure is with them today as they grieve his passing. For being someone who was only with our family for a very short time (not even a full year!), he brought so much joy and fun to our lives and we are richer for having known him, and saddened for our loss.

Max was a 12, almost 13 year old pure bred yellow lab. He was good natured, inquisitive, and so very even tempered and loving. I can't remember his "offical" name, the one on his papers, although I know his first name is "Maximus." He was also known as "Dogbert" for whatever reason, and he was much loved, both by his original family, as well as us, his adoptive family.

At our wedding reception at the house last August, Max discovered the keg, where there were ice cubes for the taking. He snuck over, looked around to see if anyone was paying attention to him, then quickly snuck one out.

He was very coy in chewing it up, not realizing how loud he actually was....



And then he looked innocently around as if to say "Who? Me?????"

We laughed and laughed at him! He was so cute!

Another fun memory: he wasn't supposed to be on the furniture, but that didn't stop him from sneaking up there. I came downstairs from doing something in my bedroom, to find him on the couch. When I didn't scold or holler, he laid down so sweetly. Who could get mad at that face?


I think he liked that couch because it was right next to the heat/air conditioning vent and it was nice and cool that way. Liisa made him a bunch of "seasonal" neckwear and he often sported something fun in honor of various holidays or themes. He was very good natured that way!

Another fun memory of Max was being at Kris and Rollie's lake place over the 4th of July. Max and Hank woke the place up when Jesse and Liisa got up there and tried to sneak in (Kristi fell out of bed and hit the floor in the loft, adding to the noise and confusion!). He loved swimming and playing fetch.

Here he is swimming with Jesse and Rei in the lake.

And here he is with Hank, resting in the boat. Max loved to travel by car and went pretty much everywhere with the kids. He loved to be in Princeton on the land, and had free rein to run and roam. He was such a good dog! Max even travelled down here to Mascoutah and met our three dogs here! There were a few issues with territory, but he was a good houseguest, and a wonderful traveller!

I think this has to be one of my favorite pictures of Max. He was so good with the babies, and seemed to understand instinctively that they were small and needed herding. Alexis loved him and his name was one of her first clearly spoken words. Justin too claimed him as "his" and he was so gentle with all their poking, prodding, and climbing.

Jesse found Max for Liisa because she was so dreading having an empty house after Rei and I moved. He had been raised in a family who were splitting up due to a divorce, and Liisa struggled with taking him away from "his boy", who, along with his father, wept when Liisa and Jesse drove away with him; He loved Liisa with a passion and was her faithful companion. He came to live at my house, and was never any trouble, although he and our cats had their issues.

Max had a run-in with a neighbor's dog, and nearly got his throat torn out; Liisa paid a small fortune to get him strong and healthy, but that was the beginning of Max's difficulties. After the incident, he became a bit more fearful, and he started having seizures and "episodes" of confusion, disorientation, and balance. It was eventually discovered that he had a tumor on his pancreas and it was causing low blood sugar issues for him. He was treated medically for as long as it was feasible to do so, but this past week Max took a turn for the worst, and wasn't going to get better. Liisa and Jesse made the only decision possible for Max, and they loved him to the end. He is going to be cremated, and when he comes home, they will decide whether he'll remain in Minneapolis, or be taken to Princeton, where he can be by them always.

Max has crossed the rainbow bridge and I am sure my Dad has met him joyfully on the other side.