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Make a gift to The Tamarr Memorial Fund
Donate to Disability Assistance Dogs
Or send a check to:
530 23rd Street #3
Bettendorf, IA 52722 |
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The Animal Shelter In 1997, I was picked up by Animal Control in Logan, Utah. I was at the doors of the local mall scaring everyone with my attempts to be friendly. For some reason they were scared of a big dog with a black face. The next day, Rosina visited the shelter and I met her for the first time. She didn't take me home that day though. I stayed at the shelter for 2 weeks. Then one day she came back to get me and took me home! I joined her pack of 4 dogs all training to be various types of service dogs.
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The CallI came to the shelter the day after Tamarr was brought in. I was looking for a dog to be a service dog for a client. At 2-1/2 he was just within the age range I was looking for. He was perfect, an excellent candidate for this person, except for one small detail. He's a German Shepherd, and she specifically asked for no German Shepherds. So sadly, I left him there, hoping his original owners would come get him. I had never seen a more beautiful, more well built German Shepherd so I never would have thought someone would not come for him. Two weeks later the shelter called me up. He had not been picked up nor adopted, and they were going to put him to sleep! I asked them to hold him a few more days, and I went to get him.
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TrainingI learned all kinds of things. How to be a well behaved dog, how to behave in all kinds of situations, how to turn on and off light switches, how to retrieve things as small as a penny, how to provide support to someone who needed help standing, and on and on. I even learned how to pull a cart, how to open doors, and many other things. Then one day, Rosina was offered a job at Guide Dogs for the Blind. She finished training and placed all her other dogs, but I went with her. We moved to California and later to Michigan for another job with Leader Dogs for the Blind. Then Rosina started finding that her disability was becoming too much. She retrained me to work with her and I became a Service Dog partner to her.
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DisabilityNot all disabilities are visible and mine isn't. Suddenly, what had been difficult to deal with became impossible. For years I was in and out of hospitals trying to find something that would work. The one stable thing in my life was Tamarr. Early on, a professional asked me if there weren't some kind of Service Dogs for my disability. I researched and found specific things that my dog could do for me to be a Service Dog. Training began anew, this time for me. Tamarr proved excellent to the task, even beginning to alert me to panic attacks before I even knew they were coming. |
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Service DogI loved my life as a Service Dog. I went everywhere with Rosina and we did everything together. We moved to Iowa as she continued to get treatment. For 8 years we were partners, through all the ups and downs. Helping her was my life's work and one I enjoyed very much. Unfortunately as time moves on, I started to get old. I slowed down, but I was still able to perform my work. Finally it was time to think about finding someone to take my place. So in August of 2009, we added a puppy to our family, a young german shepherd. I haven't had much time to teach him, but I hope I've given him a good start and I'm sure he's up to the task.
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Age creeps up
I watched him over the last few months as life became more and more difficult. He wanted to work, but his muscles became weak; his feet started dragging. At 14 years old he was incredibly healthy, but age takes its toll no matter what. It became harder and harder to move and eventually even to stand up on his own. Eventually I started having to help him even to get up. Once he was standing he was usually okay, but getting there was the problem. Going up and down stairs became difficult as well requiring a great deal of help to prevent his falling and injuring himself. Luckily we only had 6 stairs into and out of our apartment, but they became a serious challenge. Once the puppy came, Tamarr started telling me that it was time for him to go through the Last Door. We sent the puppy to visit a friend for a few days and we spent a few days together just he and I. |
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Final Days Together we visited some of my favorite places, the quarry where I
love to swim, the quiet paths through the woods along the creek in the
parks nearby. I love to explore new places and we visited some places
we hadn't been before. I didn't want to stop walking no matter how
tired I was. We went where I could wade in the water (swimming was now
extremely difficult though it was one of my favorite activities). We
played short games of catch with the ball (my absolute favorite toy).
We sat together and talked and cried. We visited a few businesses that
we often frequent so I could say bye to people I knew. The puppy came
home on Sunday and we spent one day together all three of us. It
rained that evening so we weren't able to walk, but we went to Chili's
for dinner and one last outing together. We took another walk in the
morning all three together. We walked and walked until finally it was
time to go home and get ready to go.
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The Last Door
Saying goodbye to my partner is the hardest thing I've ever done. In
his final moments I felt he was really ready to go, but that didn't make it any easier. I sat on the floor with him and cried as he fell into forever sleep. You could see
the mantle pass from Tamarr to puppy and the puppy became more quiet
and serious. Tamarr passed through the Last Door quietly in my arms at
about 3:40pm on September 21st, 2009. I will miss you, Tamarr. I love
you. |
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Copyright 2009, Tamarr Memorial Fund Trust |
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Tamarr's Story
