Tater: Gone Too Soon

Robert and Roberta have adopted a number of dogs from Jan and California GSP Rescue over the years. Recently we were saddened to learn that Tater passed away suddenly. He was loved and well cared for as all their dogs have been. The following memorial was written by Roberta and is a reminder to us all to appreciate every moment we can spend with our dogs."We adopted 9 month old Tater from the Rescue in 2006.  He came to live with us because our very young female GSP Desmo was playfully kicking the snot out of our older male GSP Ripley.  Desmo was so rough in her play that old Ripley was hiding in the garage just to get away from her.  We needed a big young male for her to play with, and play hard.  I explained the situation to Jan, and she had just the right dog.Tater was tall, lean, athletic stray found running in Griffith park, and he didn’t have a mean bone in his body.  He was ideal for us, and quickly became Desmo’s play buddy.  Tater could take everything she could dish out, and then some.  We had a wonderful life with Tater, enjoying his quiet strength and his gentle ways.  Tater provided the steady guidance to our newest young GSP, Trooper, teaching him how to not be afraid of the dark.  Tater traveled extensively with us, visiting 21 states.  He absolutely loved traveling and camping, and the truck was definitely his happy place.  We just went on a 3 week camping trip to Montana in early September 2016, visiting Yellowstone and Glacier, and everyplace in between.  Tater was in heaven, running free like the wind in the dog parks at Bozeman (37 fenced acres!) and Whitefish, Montana.A week after we returned, he quit eating and seemed listless.  The blood test showed that his kidneys had shut down.  After a few desperate days of fluid therapy, Tater’s kidneys had quit functioning.  He jumped in the back of the truck, ready to go back to Montana, and we held him as the vet quietly euthanized him.   Tater was never sick once in his life with us, so his quick demise was a shock to us all.We certainly hold our Desmo and Trooper a little closer now that Tater is gone, and I see him everyday out of the corner of my eye.  We miss you, big guy, and can’t wait to see you again on the other side".