Dear Sweet Apollo - Rest In Peace

Some of you may have read my tribute to Apollo in the spring and my struggles with how to prepare the children for his passing.  We had him put down this morning, it was very quite and peaceful.  I'm struggling and sad, and worried about Hubs and about how the children will take it (they're with their father and we haven't told them yet).  

My apologies for not getting any posts up for a few days.  Thank you for your understanding.

Liv

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On Losing a Family Member

When my husband and I were dating, I met his kids well before he “met” mine.  He had joint custody of two gorgeous dogs – Montana, a full Rottweiler, and Apollo, a German Shepard Rottweiler mix.  Montana was about eight at the time, and Apollo was about eleven.  I say “about” because we’re not quite sure how old Apollo is.  When my husband rescued him, just after his first marriage, he had been living on the streets for a while and was a little rough.  And at about 100 pounds, I’m sure that Apollo was quite intimidating.   My husband is an “alpha” though, and Apollo accepted him as part of his pack. They have a very pure bond - one that I have never witnessed before, and admire a great deal.

I wasn’t around when Montana was introduced to the pack.  My husband and the woman that he was living with at the time got her as a puppy.  I gather Apollo was rather hard on her – and I know from experience she is quite a spirited dog.  Perhaps because she was a puppy, or maybe because she was pushing in on his territory (my husband), Apollo had no problem playing rough with her, and teaching her the ropes the hard way.