Vino's Eulogy - 7/1/25
The Formitive Puppy Years:
One day I pulled up to a farm in northwest Atlanta to visit a puppy breeded known for beautiful Labradoodles. When I arrived, I found an energetic and happy 6 month old puppy - the runt of the litter and the last to be adopted. He was passed over by others, but I was not disuaded. My agreement with the owner was that I would take him home for a couple days to see if he fit. After a few hours time the deal was done and I called to say that I had accepted Vino into my home permanently as a member of the family. Truth be told, he was my family because I had never been married nor had children. I remember the first challenge he encountered trying to figure out how to get up to the 2nd story of my large home. He would get to the middle landing on the dual stair setup and head back down, clumsily making his way up, down, up, down. But eventually he cracked the code and made it to the top triamphuntly on day 1 in his new forever home. Next step was socialization and obedience traning because he got very little of that prior. We went on many, many trips to the dog park and other places and he loved to run and be chased by the other dogs, As he grew he was fast and rarely ever got caught. Then there was the experience at the Petsmart training class. Vino did great, quickly learning all the basic commands, but he was still uneasy riding in the car. On one occasion leaving the Petsmart parking lot after class with the windows down, Vino got spooked by something and jumped out of the car window. I looked back in the rearview mirror and saw something resembling my dog only then learniing that he had jumped out. Fortunately he was okay, but that did prompt me to leave the windows partly up going forward. Eventually the car sickness wore off and he became a pro riding in the car and enjoying every minute of it.
The Middle Adolescent Years:
Throughout the years we went everywhere together. If he could come I took him and he almost always came with me. My beautiful happy boy quickly became my shadow and remained that way all of his life. We spent nearly every day together since I was able to work from home. One of the activities I particurly enjoyed was boating at the lake. I had a jet boat and went to the lake often to ride and swim - probably 2 or 3 times a week in the evenings. Vino always made a point to position himself at the very front where he would proceed to stand up, brace himself and ride the crashing waves fearlessly - all the while his ears flapped in the wind as we raced along. He absolutely loved to swim and chase the throw toy from the lakeside or islands that we visited and I can say he swam like a pro. He was an amazing swimmer, after which I usually took off for a long ride in the boat to dry him off. It was a win win situation.
Another favorite pastime fo mine was playing tennis with the guys, typically 2 or 3 times a week. We played either at my home courts or at a friends courts and it was common practice for Vino to come everytime. After running around a bit during warmup to greet everybody he would typically lay down and at mid court near the bench and watched for hours as we played. Occasionally a stray ball woulld come his way which Vino helped to retrieve. Everyone knew Vino was well behaved and part of the group, so we never had any issues whatsoever. Outside the court Vino loved to chase and retrieve tennis balls at the park. Over time I managed to collect several large bags of used tennis balls that were discarded by other players. To Vino no tennis ball was ever over the hill and worthy of being discarded - so we ended up with a lifetime supply. Life was good and he was a happy dog indeed. We played fetch with the chuck-it his entire life, all the way until the final month of his life. He would run at full speed and slide into the area the ball landed, grabbing the ball in his mouth and flipping around in one single motion. It was a sight to see. He loved every minute of it and so did I.
I was working a sales job the entire time Vino and I were together, so from time to time I would leave him with various nearby pet sitters I found on rover.com. Vino seemed to love the experience and the companionship of sitters and the other dogs, evidenced by the glowing feedback I received when I came to pick him up. With one particular sitter who called him Vino bambino, he would bark at me when I knocked on the door to pick him up (protecting the house as he did) and was reluctant to leave and come home with me. I learned to get used to it in time. There was however one incident at that sitters (Ruth was he name) where I learned she had friends over for burgers. Apparantly a dog matching Vino's description decided to counter serf when no one was looking eating several freshly cooked burgers. Fortunately, Ruth took it in stride realizing that is what dogs do. Coincidentally, when it was time for me to sell my jet boat I sold it to Ruth which she appreciated due to the fact she had a black lab that liked the water.
The Adult Dog /Old Dog Years:
Throughout the years Vino and I shared our lives together in harmony. I lived in the suburbs of Atlanta for many years, followed by a few years in central FL where we moved to help spend time with my parents and help care for my father. Vino loved to vist the local dog parks, ride in the golf cart, play fetch in the back yard and go for car rides throughout that time. More than anything, Vino treasured his time just lounging around and spending time with the family. Once you started petting Vino he made it his business to keep the action going by rubbing his head against peoples legs and nudging their hands - more please, more please was the refrain. As my father's health worsened from alzheimers and cancer and he began nearing the end of his life around age 80, Vino could be seen at my Dad's bedside keeping him company and showing support/sympathy. My Dad was never really a dog person, but Vino didn't care. He was determined to show his love as he always did by spending quality time with those near and dear to him. I was proud of him and thankful for his gesture to my beloved Dad.
When my father was nearing the end of his life and I knew the next chapter of mine was preparing to start, my older brother and I came up with a crazy idea of building a small cabin in the woods of TN on 20 acres of land I found out in the country. The undeveloped property lies on the western ridge of the sequatchie valley about 60 miles north of Chattanooga. Slowly but surely my idea for the custom cabin was compiled from the back of a napkin to a detailed set of building plans. Although I didn't quite realize it at the time, Vino and I were about to embark on an adventure. Try working full time, living in a tent and building a house from the ground up during the height of the covid era for starters. Throughout the process Vino would sit quietly and watch the progress as we laid out the lines for the piers, constructed the frame and dried in the home using nothing but hand tools, a utility trailer, an unreliable gas generator and a small solar panel setup for charging phones/tools. We kept food and beverages cool in coolers with regular trips for ice. It was quite an experience and throughout that time Vino kept us both company and lived happilly with me in a small 3 person tent. He never made a fuss and was supportive as he always seemed to be.
The home was largely finished in 2023 at which time Vino was about 10 years old. At that time Vino's heath was excellent, despite the fact that he contracted erlichia from a tick bite a year or so prior. TN is famous for their ticks and venomous snakes, so we both tried to keep each other safe the best we could. Vino and I continued to enjoy many adventures together as we explored our local surroundings and area attractions. Vino was always up for several walks a day, hiking, car rides, walks down the driveway and to the pond, etc. Any excuse to go for walk was a good one for Vino as he loved to explore, sniff and get into trouble. In the meantime, Vino frequently lounged on the veranda watching the birds, squirrels and deer play and keeping me company as I did things nearby. Vino never took his eyes off of me because he liked to be kept abreast of the situation at all times. Line of sight appeared to be his motto. I have many fond memories of these times and am thankful that we could share those experiences together.
In the last year or so of Vino's life he began to experience age related issues (fatty tumors on his belly, arthritis flares in his legs and hips, etc), but thankfully these relatively minor issues never dampened his spirit or enthusiasm for life or hampered his primary goal of expressing love to me and many others who had the good grace to be in his presence. Many of our trips to Lowe's were puntcuated by visits of the various departments, where Vino was well known to many who took a liking to him and looked forward to his visits - often brandishing treats. Good times were had by all and I am grateful for the experiences. During the last 2 weeks of Vino's life in June 2025 he began to develop unexplained weaknness in his extremities, a bleeding foot pad issue and an ear infection.
About a month or two prior to that I was pondering how to take Vino along with me on the jetski given our mutual love of the water. I decided to mount a large plastic storage container to the rear, fastened by straps and enblazened by a sticker on the back I found on Amazon stating "Just gonna send it!" in blue letters. As it turns out, that idea worked flawlessly and we were able to enjoy several jet ski rides with Vino sitting in the back - his ears flapping in the wind with glee as we cruised down the TN river, Caney For Rivers and the TN riverwalk areas in downtown Chattanooga. The onlookers seemed a bit surprised to see a white fluffy doodle on the back of the ski as evidenced by their sometimes perplexed looks. I on the other hand just wish I had come up with the idea earlier. In any event, Vino accompanied me on what ended up being our final ride together down the Caney Fork River and ultimately down a secluded narrow creek heading towards Sparta, TN called the Calfkiller River. While I didn't realize it at the time, that last ride turned out to be one of the best of my life. I love exploring remote waterways with my best friend Vino in tow and I had never been able to do so prior, due to low water levels.
Ultimately, it wasn't long after that when a significant decline in Vino's mobillity and heath began. Over a period of just over a week, Vino required help moving and began to get tired more easily, sleeping in his comfortable dog bed much of the time making sure that I was always in eyesight. During that time and prior we visited multiple vets, but ultimately all the healthy organic food, supplements and modern big pharma concoctions were not sufficient to bring him back to health. Up until the last couple of days I was hopeful he would improve, giving us more precious time together, but it was not to be. God wanted my beautiful boy back and that was that. Vino passed on with relatively minimal physical pain rather unexpectedly to me during the morning on the last day of June. As I looked into his big brown eyes for the final time his breath was labored, he was in obvious distress. When his tongue fell to the side of his mouth and his chest stopped beating my heart broke. My best friend was gone and at that moment it felt like a part of me died too. When God calls you home and its your time there is nothing else that can be done.
Throughout the time we spent together, 11 years in total since God gifted me with Vino, he has impacted my life in so many ways, many unexpected. Every dog person knows fullwell that God outdid himself whe he created dogs because they offer the purest form of love and acceptance I have ever experienced on this earth. Over the years, Vino became my shadow and constant companion - always showing his love in every way he knew how. I am truly grateful to God for bringing us together and providing time to experience life together. My life has been deeply touched by him and I will never be the same again. I can only pray that one day God will allow us to reunite once again in eternity. I am clinging tightly to that thought at this time as I grieve the loss of my best friend Vino (12/27/2013 - 6/30/2025). RIP Vino, you are loved more than you know and will never be forgotten.