Mack
3rd December 2005 – 13th March 2018
R.I.P.
- Please Note: For the final information on Mack's journey, please check the "Blog" pages...
- Final edit: Thursday 7th March 2019 (previous: Thu 4th Jan '18, Sat 10th Feb, Sat 24th Feb, 15th Mar '18)
Mack waiting to be let in after a snowy walk
Mack waiting for his dinner – not a sound, but those unblinking golden eyes!...
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Mack amid the bluebells
Mack on Hadrian's wall, Summer 2014
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Mack is my pedigree Border Collie. He's nine years old and I've had him for just over six years. I bought him from a farmer in Glamorganshire who'd trained him on sheep but was going to put him down because of a 'character defect' – he'll run away and hide in a hedge (or behind a sofa) if you shout at him; he's that gentle.
He has been my closest and most responsive 'Best friend' all this time. I've been retired since 2006 so I'm nearly always at home, and he's been my constant companion.
We go for a 45-minute walk in the fields behind my house twice a day, rain or shine. To be exact though, I walk and Mack runs huge circles round me, waiting for me to hurl him his tennis ball which he will often catch 'full toss'. He then brings it back to me for a repeat – and again, and again, and again... Sometimes we go to other places for 'walks', which includes the nearby River Wey which he loves to swim in, especially if it's to get a tennis ball. He will also leap in on command, entering the water with a big splash, but always with his nose just held above the surface like a snorkel. He loves to be towel-dried after a swim.
He has been my closest and most responsive 'Best friend' all this time. I've been retired since 2006 so I'm nearly always at home, and he's been my constant companion.
We go for a 45-minute walk in the fields behind my house twice a day, rain or shine. To be exact though, I walk and Mack runs huge circles round me, waiting for me to hurl him his tennis ball which he will often catch 'full toss'. He then brings it back to me for a repeat – and again, and again, and again... Sometimes we go to other places for 'walks', which includes the nearby River Wey which he loves to swim in, especially if it's to get a tennis ball. He will also leap in on command, entering the water with a big splash, but always with his nose just held above the surface like a snorkel. He loves to be towel-dried after a swim.
The launch...
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... and the snorkel!
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Last August, Mack walked nearly 40 miles over four days along the North Somerset and Devon coast at the beginning of the South West Coast Trail.
There is much, much more I could say about my 'Best friend'. He was always there to greet me when I arrived home; was to be found lying outside my bedroom door in the mornings patiently waiting for me to appear; loved coming on car journeys, even if it was in my 1960 open Daimler Dart sports car. He was afraid of nothing provided he was with me.
There is much, much more I could say about my 'Best friend'. He was always there to greet me when I arrived home; was to be found lying outside my bedroom door in the mornings patiently waiting for me to appear; loved coming on car journeys, even if it was in my 1960 open Daimler Dart sports car. He was afraid of nothing provided he was with me.
Mack cut a pad on glass from a broken beer bottle in a field.
He didn't mind the cut as much as the bandage!
ALL THIS CHANGED, on Sunday the 21st of December 2014; the Sunday before Christmas.
I was abroad and Amanda my wife was walking him that morning. As usual, Mack was playing one of his games. He would run up the drives of the houses on our quiet road, drop the ball to watch it roll down the drive to the road, and wait for it to be thrown back to him. He'd catch it and run ahead to the next drive.
It was about 09:30 and he'd run up our neighbour's drive – the last one before he reached our home. He was crouched on the drive, waiting for Amanda to throw him his ball, when our neighbours backed out in their car. Because they were backing they didn't see him; Mack is so trusting he didn't move, and the car ran over him – straddled him. Our neighbours thought they'd "run over a log" and stopped to investigate. They then saw Mack lying on their drive struggling to stand up, but couldn't. He never made a sound. Amanda arrived in time to see the result of this disaster.
To cut a long story short, assisted by another neighbour she took him to a nearby emergency vet who X-Rayed him. They quickly realised that his injuries were far worse than they could address so they called Amanda to return and take him to Fitzpatrick Referrals. Most fortunately, this state-of-the-art vet's surgery practice is only five miles from us, at Eashing, just South of Godalming. They X-Rayed him and did an MRI scan which showed the seriousness of his injuries.
Essentially, he'd been squashed while in a crouching position. Vertebrae three and four had been displaced and the disc between them shattered. This was the most serious injury, which appears to have paralysed him from his shoulders down. His sternum was also broken with two of the bones overlapped, and two ribs were sheared at their attachment points.
On Monday morning the 22nd of December he had a 4-and-a-half hour operation to restore his vertebrae to the right position. These were secured in place with six stainless steel pins embedded in cement. I returned home early on Tuesday the 23rd and Amanda took me straight from Heathrow to see him. Fitzpatrick's were very generous in allowing me to see him at 09:00 am since visiting hours are not until the afternoon.
My once so beautiful dog was in a sorry state. It was heart-warming to see his ears prick and him attempt to raise his head when he heard my voice and saw me. But he was very ill, and also heavily dosed on pain killers. He still though, nuzzled his head against my hand, wanting to be stroked more strongly. This was a very difficult time, with many tears.
I was abroad and Amanda my wife was walking him that morning. As usual, Mack was playing one of his games. He would run up the drives of the houses on our quiet road, drop the ball to watch it roll down the drive to the road, and wait for it to be thrown back to him. He'd catch it and run ahead to the next drive.
It was about 09:30 and he'd run up our neighbour's drive – the last one before he reached our home. He was crouched on the drive, waiting for Amanda to throw him his ball, when our neighbours backed out in their car. Because they were backing they didn't see him; Mack is so trusting he didn't move, and the car ran over him – straddled him. Our neighbours thought they'd "run over a log" and stopped to investigate. They then saw Mack lying on their drive struggling to stand up, but couldn't. He never made a sound. Amanda arrived in time to see the result of this disaster.
To cut a long story short, assisted by another neighbour she took him to a nearby emergency vet who X-Rayed him. They quickly realised that his injuries were far worse than they could address so they called Amanda to return and take him to Fitzpatrick Referrals. Most fortunately, this state-of-the-art vet's surgery practice is only five miles from us, at Eashing, just South of Godalming. They X-Rayed him and did an MRI scan which showed the seriousness of his injuries.
Essentially, he'd been squashed while in a crouching position. Vertebrae three and four had been displaced and the disc between them shattered. This was the most serious injury, which appears to have paralysed him from his shoulders down. His sternum was also broken with two of the bones overlapped, and two ribs were sheared at their attachment points.
On Monday morning the 22nd of December he had a 4-and-a-half hour operation to restore his vertebrae to the right position. These were secured in place with six stainless steel pins embedded in cement. I returned home early on Tuesday the 23rd and Amanda took me straight from Heathrow to see him. Fitzpatrick's were very generous in allowing me to see him at 09:00 am since visiting hours are not until the afternoon.
My once so beautiful dog was in a sorry state. It was heart-warming to see his ears prick and him attempt to raise his head when he heard my voice and saw me. But he was very ill, and also heavily dosed on pain killers. He still though, nuzzled his head against my hand, wanting to be stroked more strongly. This was a very difficult time, with many tears.
Mack on the 24th December, two days after spinal surgery.
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24th December – a very sick Mack
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