Hi Spapad - my bad for not clarifying - it was my childhood cat that made it to 22....Nita (the Rottie/Doberman) was about 15 or 16 I believe.  My boss at my first job had an English Bull Terrier named Lucy (his name was Ricky, how cute is that :), he used to bring it to his store every day.  She was a real character.  No matter how many times he'd bathe her or not, she always smelled like salami....very condusive to good business in fine jewellery retail!  NUPE - I had a beautiful rabbit as a kid....but we ended up giving her to a farm (hopefully my parents weren't lying !!!!  Years later, I went to Italy to meet my dad's side of the family, and to my absolute horror, everywhere we went, rabbit was the mail course for dinner....I didn't eat well for weeks !

I had no idea....it would have absolutely killed me to deal with something like that.....I've always loved German Shepherds, but I hear so much about the trouble they have with hip dysplasia I don't think I could handle seeing them suffer....I had a terrible time watching my mother-in-law's gorgeous Rottie/Doberman go downhill with age and struggle just to sit and lie down.  I wish dogs could have the same life expectancy as cats.  My first lived to be 22.  She was blind and almost toothless when she died, but she still had moxie up until the end.

		spapad wrote:
		In a way, they spared you a world of hurt. Irish Wolfhounds only live about 8 years. I would be heartbroken to loose a dog in 8 years, and if its adopted, even less time. Couldn't bare it. I lost my last cattledog to seizures at only 3 years old. That was shocking and hurtful considering I had done everything I could to medicate her right and all. Trust me, they did do you a favor. Your kids would have been mortified at his short life.      metalgodess wrote: 1.    A 16 yr old fat black rescue cat named William. 2.    A 1 -1/2 yr old gray tabby we took in as a kitten from a feral cat I befriended, named Bosco, total psycho-boy but awesome. 3.    3 feral/strays from the same mom that had Bosco - Tuffy, Blackie and Meeno, I made them an outdoor lodge to hang out in as kittens, and they never left. 4.    Hoping for another dog soon, had a couple as a kid, miss having one....pissed me off because I got all excited by a post at the Toronto Humane Society about an unclaimed Irish Wolfhound named Ruckles, huge huge dog, and when we went there, they dicked us around and said he was unavailable, probably because someone who worked there knew that was a 'valuable' breed and sold him off for bucks....I just wanted him cause I fell in love with his face in the online picture.

I have a hummingbeagle. Her ears can lift her up so high!