A relaxed, but curious Sampson
I remember growing up we would always ask our parents if we could get a dog. I would say we finally gave up when we hit middle school. It was quite funny. My dad just sounded like a broken record. A simple “NO” every time the question was brought up. He doesn’t like dogs. At least to my knowledge he doesn’t. We would hound him all the time. This question probably came up once a month. We never had a chance, but I guess it became a force of habit to ask every once in awhile to annoy dad. My mom grew up with a dachshund. She always liked dogs, and I bet we could have convinced her to let us get one had our dad not intervened. Because of that I could never understand the connection people got with their dogs. I mean its just a dog right?
When my old roommate bought his first house, I moved in with him and shortly after that he asked if it would be cool to get a dog. Nobody objected and a couple weeks later Sampson showed up at our door. He was about 2 years old when Chris got him. I think from a family friend up in St. Francis or something like that. A Lab/Shepherd mix. Basically he looked like a chocolate lab with the tail of a German Shepherd. I knew nothing about dogs when he showed up. I couldn’t understand why he howled so much when the doorbell rang. Why did he just pee on that chair? Why does he obsess over small furry critters? Oh yea, I was late for work plenty of times from those mornings. He was a slut for attention but it was great. I remember those mornings where I would be laying in bed and Sam would put his head on my bed and stare at me waiting to get up. Those late nights hanging out in the backyard burning things, drinking Mickey’s hand grenades and chillin’ with the pup(he howled at fireworks). I learned a lot about dogs with Sampson and ultimately I was convinced when I moved out that I would someday have a dog of my own.
Early last week I guess he started having liver problems. I got a call from Chris around Friday and it didn’t sound good. Liver failure. Bad news. Nothing that could be done. I guess they said it was hereditary and it couldn’t have been avoided. Jeez, he’s barely 5 years old. It came one so quick. Just two weeks ago I was wrestling with him at Kubi’s. Just sad. They were able to put him on some meds for the weekend but last night Chris had to put him asleep. I was fortunate enough to stop by there Saturday morning to hang out with Sam for an hour or so and say my goodbyes. He wasn’t moving at all, couldn’t walk. However when I showed up his tail wagged just a little bit as I came into his view. That was pretty cool. I never thought I would have that kind of a connection with an animal. Everyone that came across to meet Sampson always said the same thing. A super mellow, kind, loving dog that liked everyone. Well everyone except for my buddy Paul whom Sampson liked to bite. Farewell Sam.
