Vern is handsome...

Vern at Hamlin Park.  Hamlin was his favorite park.  Not a legal off-leash park, Hamlin is right next to a High School.  There was so much trouble with drugs, alcohol and crime in the woods in this park that the police turned a deaf ear to any reports of off leash dogs for many years.  

The park was very close to the Shoreline house, and pretty close to the Lake City house, but by the time we moved to Kenmore, it was inconvenient and Vern's knees were really bothering him so we rarely went.  The city started cracking down on off-leash dogs, too, further discouraging us.

Handsome Boy on the bed at the house in Lake City.  He was such a snuggle bug and spoiled boy!  He much preferred furniture and especially the bed!  It was really very cute when he weighed 35 pounds, but by the time he got to 120 we thought maybe we had made an unfortunate choice.  He LOVED to sleep with Mommy & Daddy on the Bed.  When he got sick, he'd sneak up onto the bed in the middle of the night, until he was in too much pain to get up there.  We'd wake up covered in sweat find him laying all over us. 

Music lover and Led Zeppelin fan!  Here is our good boy wearing his Daddy's t-shirt and smiling proudly!

Playing with a ball in the back yard of the Lake City house.  He loved big balls.  He found a tether ball as a youngster and has been hooked ever since.

Caught in the act!  He's not supposed to be on the sheets and she's not supposed to be on the clean laundry.  To the very end, Vern (and even Tinkerbell) would occasionally strip the covers back to be naughty and lay on the sheets.  And to this day, Skippy "helps" fold laundry!

A dog and his kitty.  Vern and Skippy grew up together and played with each other.  Skippy would tease Vern until he chased her and eventually she'd let him catch her and put her whole head in his mouth and drool on her and spin her around with his paw.  She'd "push" him off when she got tired of it and pretend to wash herself, but she always left the Sid Vicious hair-do in-tact.

He was always so gentle with his kitty and she was always so rough with him.  He really loved his kitty.  NOBODY messed with Vern's kitty!

What a handsome boy!  Here he is in the Lake City house laying on the cedar shaving stuffed "muffin" I made for him.

Young Vern with Baby Tinkerbell.  This is the day we brought Tinkerbell home.  She is 6 months old and he is just over a year.  He was very gentle and loving with her for the most part.  

Good Boy Vern sharing with Baby Tink.  She just had no fear of him!  She put her face right in his mouth and took the ball from him and he let her.  As time went on and her face got bigger, they had to learn to cooperate to transfer the ball, but he would usually give it to her if she "asked" for it.

TUMMY BOY!!!!!

Handsome Boy loves the snow.  This was his last winter.

Vern playing in the snow with his Daddy.

Goofy Mister with snow on his nose.  Vern loved the snow so much!

Vern loved to scoot balls around in the slippery snow.

Ruh-Ro, Raggy!  Mister  Boo has no clue what Tinkebell has in mind for him.  (Ignorance is only bliss until you're tackled by 95 pounds of puppy love!)

Vern and Skippy and Carrie and Paul at the house in Shoreline when the kids were only about 6 months old.

Safest kitten in the world!  Vern and Skippy sleeping on the same couch in the Shoreline house as youngsters.

Vern at the house in Lake City eating is favorite doggie treat, Frosty Paws, from the container that Paul is holding for him.

Vern running across the parking lot at Hamlin Park, his favorite place to go.  Vern is about one year old.

Vern in the Hamlin Park lot with his friends.  He's standing next to a Boxer who was his first "girlfriend".  She introduced her self by boxing him upside the head and he followed her around relentlessly for the rest of the walk.

Vern 'chasing' a squirrel up a tree at Hamlin.  This was before he developed any hip or knee problems, but it's still one of the very few times he jumped up and stood on his hind legs for anything.  Squirrels and food -- that was about it.

Vern LOVED to chase the water from the hose.  It was his favoritest game EVER!!!  When his hips and knees started to go we had to quit playing it so much because we were afraid he'd slip.  But boy did he love it for those few years.  He also loved to play "You Can't Catch Me" (and we couldn't) and he loved to chase the laser pointer.

Vern had the happiest smile and he smiled a lot -- what a good, happy boy!

And of course, there was the lazy side of our boy.  He was the original couch potato.  He could sit in two people's laps at one time and didn't feel the need to ask permission to do so!  If he didn't want to play or go potty and there was no food or squirrel involved, he rarely got up off the couch except to find a more comfortable piece of furniture.  This was at the house in Lake City and he loved laying in this corner because it was where two windows came together at the corner of the house, where the house sat at the corner of an intersection -- very good watch dog positioning!

Vern loved his "Uncle" Vic very much.  They had a completely unique relationship.  Vern was comfortable wrestling with Vic the way he wasn't with Paul, as his "Alpha" or with me, well, at least not since he accidentally banged my face with his skull that one time and gave me a black eye, LOL.  When Vern and Vic wrestled, the growls were almost completely convincing -- they were both comfortable enough with one another to just get rough!

This is a picture of Vern shortly after his diagnosis, and the last time he saw his "Uncle" Vic.

Just hangin' with the guys!

At the end, the pain was enough that the pain pills weren't cutting it and we had to buy a morphine patch for Mr. Boo.  We took him to Hamlin Park again one last time that Saturday.  He was such a good boy!  We thought maybe we'd walk in a few feet and just enjoy the afternoon, but Vern wasn't having any of that nonsense!  He did his best to drag us along the old route and wouldn't take "no" for an answer!  

He did tire out part way through and stopped to rest by a small grove of trees.  He looked around and smiled as he stopped, taking it all in just one last time.  He looked so happy and at peace.  We buried a lock of his fur next to one of those trees after he passed, so that a part of him would always be in the place he loved the most.

This is the last picture I ever took of my boy.  It was a Sunday after the big day at the park.  He was pretty pooped and I think his shoulder hurt in spite of the Morphine patch.  After this Sunday he laid down in our bedroom and only got up to go potty or eat until Wednesday, when we took him to the Vet for the last time.