Uncle Mort - A Character Leaves Us

Heavy, heavy hearts abound at Hundenruhe Haven tonight. Our dear Uncle Mortie went to the Rainbow Bridge this morning. He was 16 years old. I cannot explain in words the impact his death leaves in our pack. Mortie was the Omega, the bottom of the pack, and often the brunt of the other dogs' pushing. He not only endured it, he met it head-on, with a grumble and a lift of his deformed lip - revealing empty gums. When he was younger, he loved to get "heinie happies" - scritching of his hips and backside. He would march in place with his back legs, rising up onto his front legs in sheer ecstasy.
Uncle Mort came to us with two green, rotting teeth hanging out of his mouth, his jaw rotted away and deformed. After removing the offenders, he blossomed and became a crazy, funny little fellow. He would stand in the middle of the kitchen, barking for no reason. He had petit mal seizures, where he would stand stock still and stare at the wall - so he was put on seizure meds, which helped a lot. As he aged, he needed more and more pain meds to manage his crippled and hunched back and fused hips. But it never got him down - he always participated in the walkies in the field, and followed the pack on all its adventures. Near the end, Dan made sure that Mortie got extra treats like ice cream and graham crackers from the palm of his hand.
Uncle Mort was with us for over five years - a long time for the seniors who come to us - and I can't believe he's gone.
Tonight, as Dan was in the yard reading, a gorgeous butterfly came and hovered around him - then landed on his cheek. Later, a huge swarm of multicolored dragon flies (Jodee's favorite) put on an aerial display. Uncle Mortie is fine and sending messages of love to us - running pain free and waiting for us at the Bridge.