THOUGHTS ABOUT QORKEY

Qorkey was the most loving of all the shepherds I have had. I believe it is because I got him as a puppy.

So many thoughts. I am devastated. When Meik, Xaros, and Darek passed it was terrible also, but with them I had time to prepare. Qorkey got sick and went downhill in a matter of hours. I am thankful he did not suffer long.

We’d be outside and I’d say “You ready for dinner?” and he’d run up on the porch waiting to be let in, then wait at his bowl. He was a slow eater, once he ate the wet food (leaving most of the dry) he’d expect dessert, which was a rawhide treat. He’d go back and finish the dry later.

“Let’s go inside” he’d immediately stop what he was doing and run up on the porch.

“Where’s your toy” when we were outside meant his rope toy. When I first got it, he brought it inside and started swinging it around, cleared the coffee table off. It quickly became an outside toy only.

One day, he brought a stuffed elephant into the computer room and gave it to me. The problem was I had no idea where he got it! I soon remembered that I bought it for a Toy Run at Christmas but didn’t go, so I stuck it in a cabinet. Qorkey could open cabinets, cabinets with food or dangerous stuff had to be child-proofed. I took it away and replaced it in the cabinet with a “That’s not yours!”. About a week later, he comes in with it again. Guess he wanted it. He carried it by the ears until they came off (it was a child’s toy, after all and not a dog toy). Mr. Elephant, his “red ball” (a large Kong ball) and Baby Hedgehog were his favorite toys. I found a picture when the elephant was new, dated 2015. He kept it nearly 6 years. Mr. Elephant will stand next to Qorkey's ashes on a shelf when I receive them.

He played with fire logs and chewed them down until they were almost polished.

Whenever I was getting ready to leave, I would sit on the edge of the bed and shave with an electric shaver. Qorkey would jump up on the bed and lay down next to me and I’d pet him, rub his ears, and sing his puppy song. He’d give me a kiss and make little happy noises. I would sometimes look at my bookcase where the urns of Darek and Xaros are and think how terrible it will be when Qorkey’s day comes. I was right, too. It is terrible.

I don’t think I ever heard him whine and he wasn’t afraid of anything.

Qorkey learned how to open the front glass door, so I started locking it. I liked it open to see out, and he liked looking out also. Then, he actually figured out how to unlock it. I had to add a barrel bolt at the very top.

I guess Qorkey, like Darek, had a simple life, his world was his house, the yard and around the house, his pen, me and my friends and people who came to visit. We'd talk walks to the road and up the hill to the mailbox. Once a year, we went to the vet for his checkup. Sometimes we would go for a drive, just for fun, or stop at the park. I believe he was happy here. I miss him.

Qorkey had some allergies, ear and skin rashes. We'd have to get antibiotics, steroids, and ear medicine about twice a year. He would rebound fast. Seemed to be weather related.

Qorkey got his name because he was born in Germany. I had two other pups from the same kennel, Darek and Xaros. In Germany, you must have permission before you breed and have a litter, and they assign a letter to the litter. All dogs born in that litter must start with that letter. When I inquired about a new pup after I lost Darek, the kennel owner said she had puppies, they had not been named so I could name the one I wanted. Then she said "Q". Couldn't think of ANY good Q names, so I thought of a name that sounded like another letter, like Corky.

He was good at alerting me whenever someone approached the door, or a cat walked by, or a dog across the street, or maybe a bird or a leaf. I would always tell him he was a good boy for protecting us.

Had several delivery drivers get a scare from him, but in reality he was the sweetest dog. He'd bark but once outside he would play and be everyone's friend. He rarely barked while we were in the yard.

Qorkey would bring toys to me when I was working on the computer and/or watching TV. He'd give them to me with the "Let's play!" look, and I'd throw the ball and he'd chase it or we'd play catch with Baby Hedgehog. We did both, the ball and Baby Hedgehog just yesterday. Sometimes, he would bring all the toys in the room and leave them there, like cleaning up. Once, I found all three (Ball, Elephant, Hedgehog) on the desk in the computer room.

Sometimes, while typing away on the computer, Qorkey would come in and put his paw across my arm, letting me know it was time to stop. I'd roll the chair back and he'd come in front of me, sometimes he'd lay down under the desk making it impossible to do anything. I never made him move. When he put his paw across my arm, I'd also be able to tell if his dew claw needed trimming, as I seemed to always get a small puncture on the back of my forearm. I have one now that is healing, wish I could have another new one right now.

We played with the rope yesterday in the snow, and I thought, I need a picture of him playing in the snow with his rope toy! He put the toy down, but I got a good picture of him, looking all regal. It's on his picture page.

When I would get home, if I heard him outside in his pen I’d yell, “Qorkey, go inside!” When I opened the door, he’d come running from either the back or the bedroom, sometimes he’d meet me at the door. I’d say “Hello, Little Boy, whatcha doing?” and pet him until he calmed down a little.

When I would be mowing the lawn, he’d sit by the door or lay on the sofa and watch. Darek and Xaros did the same.

Nicknames: Qorkey the Borkie! Qorkey, qorkey borkie, king of the wild frontier! (to the tune of Davy Crockett).  Qorkus the borkus.

The door on my dryer is broken, so that when you open it, the dryer does not stop. Qorkey loved to bring his red ball and put it in the dryer when I was pulling clothes out. He would stand and watch it thump thump around.

At bedtime, I would switch off the TV and say “You ready for bed?” and he’d run to the treat cabinet. I would hand him a rolled jerky stick and he’d run into the bedroom with it. I’d follow, get in bed, then give him a few more bite sized treats. He’d usually go outside afterwards for a few minutes, doing his business, then come back in and hop on the bed.

Sometimes, early in the morning, Qorkey would come in and put his chin on the bed just behind my head. It would wake me up, I’d pet him. Sometimes, he’d jump up and lay down with his head on the pillow and cuddle. I’d scratch his ears and he’d make those little happy sounds.

In the middle of the night when I had to get up, I would often find him asleep on the sofa, which was one of his favorite spots. I’d call him in and he’d jump on the bed. Sometimes, it was a challenge for me to get comfortable if he decided to sprawl out.

When Qorkey was a puppy, he got pretty destructive when I was at work or gone. I couldn’t get mad at him though, he was too cute. Nothing that couldn’t be fixed, he grew out of it. I’d give anything if he was here now tearing something up.

Qorkey loved corrugated cardboard – boxes especially. I would get something from Amazon and give him the box to play with. He’d tear it up and leave me to pick up the pieces.

Outside, working on vehicles or doing anything that required me to stoop down or lay down on my back, soon as I was down Qorkey would run up and give me kisses, then run back off to resume whatever was interesting to him.

Qorkey also loved the water hose. Not the hose, but the stream that came out. He would chase it, attack it, just generally get soaked from the shoulders up. When I cleaned his concrete pen, I had to let him go out front so I could get it sprayed down. I bought him a fountain toy that sprayed when you stepped on it, that didn’t seem to interest him.

First thing in the morning, we’d get up and I’d go into the kitchen to fix a morning drink and morning routine. Qorkey always got a biscuit and then he’d run to the computer room, which was my next stop. He’d wait to eat it until I got in the room. I’d say, “Go ahead and eat your biscuit” and he’d gobble it down.

Qorkey would shed like crazy, more than Darek, Xaros, or Meik ever did. I ended up keeping a hand-held vacuum on the kitchen counter to vacuum the floor multiple times a day sometimes. We would have to go outside when I brushed him as it just made too much hair on the floor.

One day, I see Qorkey staring at the toilet area in my bathroom. I go look, and there is a small possum hiding behind the toilet bowl! Qorkey must have brought it in, I have seen them on tree limbs over his pen several times. I pulled it out, put it in a box and carried it outside. Another time, he brought me a baby possum that ran and hid under the sofa.

The rituals that I performed with Qorkey are hard to let go of. I expect to see him on the couch, I want to get the biscuit out in the morning, it's hard going to sleep at night without giving him his treats and having him at the foot of the bed.

Outside, he would pick up his rope toy and bring it to me, wanting to play. I'd throw it, he'd run and get it. I'd go and sit on the porch steps, and he would run with it back and forth, shake his head, having a great time. Then he would bring it to me and we'd tug. I'd give him the command to let go and then throw it again. If he wasn't playing with his toy, all I had to do was sit down on the porch steps and he'd run and find his toy and then playtime was on!

I posted on Facebook (I rarely post) about Qorkey, on my timeline and in a German Shepherd international group. As of Sunday morning, on the GSD group, Qorkey's post has 3,530 reactions and over 1,100 comments. I read every comment, and found comfort in them. Many people care, and many people said they were moved emotionally by Qorkey's sudden passing. Many agreed that he was a beautiful, handsome boy.

When I took the picture of him standing in the snow on Thursday, we, of course, had no idea what was in the future. Looking at the picture, it's hard to realize that he was sick already. Qorkey was deathly ill in that picture, but looks so strong.

I heard the term "Velcro Dogs" sometime ago, and seemed true. I'd be in the computer room and Qorkey liked to sleep under the desk behind me. I would get up to go to the restroom or grab a drink. I'd say "Don't get up" but he would ignore that, he'd have to get up, follow me, and then come back and go back to the same spot.

My mother passed last March, and when I would start thinking of her and become emotional, Qorkey would come running to give me kisses. He knew when I was upset and his love helped me through the grieving process.

I got an older Jeep Wrangler TJ almost two years ago, and I dreamed of getting it all fixed up with netting in the back so Qorkey and I could go on adventures. I researched netting and good restraints that would protect him in an open Jeep. COVID slowed down my build, but I was planning on this summer finishing the build and getting a very small camper trailer, and then Qorkey and I were going to hit the road. Things change in the blink of an eye.

When he was a puppy, whenever I left the house I would put him in the utility room, which also had his doggie door to go outside and his food and water bowls. At first, I would get him to follow me in there by giving him a couple of treats. As he grew older, he had the run of the house and didn’t stay in the utility room, but when I left I would still give him two small treats. As soon as I pulled them from the cabinet, he would trot into the utility room for his treats, standing in the same spot for over 8 years. After he ate them, I would hug him and say, “You be a good little puppy, I’ll be back later.” And he always was a good little puppy.

Chewy (the pet supply company) sent me a nice floral arrangement and a nice card. Totally unexpected, but makes me very loyal to them for the caring. The vet's office also sent me a nice card, signed by Dr Jeff and the staff. When we'd go to the vet, everyone knew and liked Qorkey. He was such a sweet boy.

I brought Qorkey home today (Thursday, February 25, 2021). The vet called and said "Qorkey was there now" and I went and got him. In a nice urn, with a plaster paw print, and an inked paw and nose print. I took the Jeep, as I wanted him to finally get to ride in the Jeep like I had planned. He's home know, with Mr. Elephant by his side and Darek and Xaros nearby.

It's been over a month as I write this. I still can't write his Eulogy yet, too many thoughts. I think of things he did and how much I cared for him and it makes my sob. I hear a noise and my first thought is that it is Qorkey walking in the room, then I realize it's not and won't ever be. I miss him terribly.