Bubba the Wonderdog

Just about 14 years ago Stacy and I went to a Sunday School social at the home of Mike and Patsy Collins. Mike had a few farm dogs then and one of then gave birth to a litter of 13. During our visit Mike took me out to the barn to see if I wanted to take one home for my girls. I said no thanks, the girls would say they would take care of a new puppy, but it would wear off and then I would have to take care of it. Mike said, "you need to take this little one home, he's the runt of 13 and can't get into nurse because of his bigger brothers and sisters." I still said no.

We went back to Mike's farm the next week for a dinner and Mike again took me out to the barn and reminded me again that the little runt was going to die if I did not take it home. I again said no. So Mike brought the runt to Stacy.

The runt weighed in a about a pound and a half, and did not even fill up her hand, she fell for the girls saying they would care for it and so Bubba was named because he was a farm dog.

Stacy took the runt to the vet and was now feeding it vitamins through an eye dropper. The runt was so weak it could not walk, but despite this Stacy would take the little guy outside where it would take a step and fall over, but before it did, he would do his business. But the runt never had an accident in the house that I can remember.

Well the runt turned into our 75 pound Bubba the Wonderdog.

Although big now, Bubba never thought he was a big dog, he used to sit in Nichole's lap while she put on her makeup getting ready for high school. He would run across the room and jump into my lap like he weighed and the same one and a half pounds.

Bubba and I in our younger days. A man, his truck and his dog.

While Nichole was attending art classes at APSU, she used Bubba as a model for a charcoal drawing.

That's my boy after we moved to the new house.

This morning, at the vet, I had to get one shot with my camera phone. Bubba never liked going to the vet and as I held his head in my hands crying like a baby, just before he went to sleep he licked my face as if to say "Good bye."

I will miss you Bubba the Wonderdog.