Vanna-Banana Big Butt

My mother always wanted a dog. Growing up, all she would talk about was when she got her own house, she would get her yard and her dog. When my mom moved to Idaho, she put herself on a breeder's list so she could purchase a Bernese mountain dog puppy. A time later, she came home with Fiona. My mom would call and say to the dog, "say hi to your sister Nessa!" Annoying as hell, but my mom finally had her dog.



Then she decided that she wanted a second Bernese mountain dog and put her name on another list. The "bitch" didn't have enough puppies, so my mom said she would wait until next season. The breeder who sold Fiona to my mom asked if she would consider taking in Vanna, Fiona's mom. From what I understand Vanna was a show dog and did very well in her day, but she was five and they couldn't use her to show or breed anymore. So my mom, not wanting to wait for another puppy, agreed.



Side note - About a year later, my mom purchased Brady, another Bernese mountain dog. My mom didn't train him well and he's pretty obnoxious. A sweetheart though.

That is Fiona on the left, Brady in the middle, and Vanna on the right (and my mom) in her backyard last winter.

Anyway, my mom called to tell me that she had to put Vanna down on Christmas. She had some sort of bone thing that could possibly be fixed, but if successful, she would still have to spend the rest of her life on heavy pain meds and in a kennel. She would be able to run or even really walk much. So my mom decided to let her go instead of having her live out the rest of her life like that. My mom is still heart broken after having to put Scooter down not too long ago. It was extremely hard to listen to my mom sob on the phone. Her way of mourning is to explain every detail that Vanna had gone through, almost like she has to tell herself it was the right thing to do. It really was, but it doesn't make the pain any less.



Vanna was a very sweet-natured girl and I will certainly miss her. She was my cuddle dog when I would go visit and sit her huge ass on me so I could hug on her.



You know, I know the ultimate heart-ache I will have to endure when I loose Sabrina, Jazzmine, and Maggie. I hate to even think it. But the love these babies show me is so worth it.