On December 11, our dear dog Koda died. It was unexpected and very sudden; Sue and I are still in shock. Koda seemed to be slowing way down over the past few weeks, then was clearly in pain. A trip to the vet delivered the bad news - he had a tumor near his spine, and we made the decision right there to say goodbye to him. We still have Marlin and Betts, yet Koda’s passing is an immense loss to us all.
Koda’s life seems to have begun in the woods of a forest in Bertie County, NC. He had at least one brother and three sisters - after living in the woods, they were essentially feral when found by a park ranger and brought to a veterinarian. At some point, he found his way to a foster for Peak Lab Rescue in Apex NC. We lost our chocolate lab Mocha in December of 2017, leaving us with no dogs for many, many years. Sue persuaded me that “it was time” (it took a long time for me to get over the loss of Mocha).
Sue was perusing the listings of Peak Lab Rescue in June of 2018 - she (and I) are very soft hearted about animals, and Koda (who was named Claude on the Peak site) looked like he had a very rough life and needed a chance. The pictures above tell the story. The left hand picture was Koda just after being treated following the rescue. The second picture was the adoption pic on the Peak site that stole Sue’s heart - his age was estimated at 1 year old.
We visited Claude, now renamed Koda, who was spending time at the home of a wonderful foster named Barb. Koda stole our heart (if we didn’t exactly steal his at first meeting!). Koda came home with us - that is picture #3, above, sitting in the back seat of our car. Later that day, he was posing on our deck for picture 4, above. What a cutie he was, and we were on our way. Not long after bringing Koda into our family, Marlin, a big gawky friendly yellow lab, joined us the following March. We added Betts in September of 2020. Our dynamic trio of wonderful rescues was complete.
Koda favored women - that was clear. He bonded with Sue immediately - and was not at all interested in getting to know me for quite a long time. He was not fond of strangers either. Patience paid off big time - Sue and I became equal “pack members” to Koda, and he brought immense joy into our home. He was protective of us right to the very end and let us know when anything unexpected - such as visitors - was happening. He loved long walks and hikes, swimming, his meals and treats, and long naps in the sun. He even learned to sing when our other two chatterbox dogs, Marlin and Betts, sung along with certain songs played on our Alexa. When we said the phrase “let’s go for a walk”, he sat, smiled and tilted his head. He often could be found near a “really big shoe” - one of our hiking boots he borrowed and brought into the yard or living room.
What was a surprise to us was the magnificent coat that quickly grew in as he adjusted to a secure, healthy home. His tail was a party (once he grew comfortable with us and let it fly, rather than the tight between the back legs tuck when we first got him. With his reddish coat, he looked like a deer running through the woods on our walks.
I could say so much more but the screen is getting blurry for some reason - words do not do credit to the dog, the friend, the family member that Koda was - and will always be in our hearts.
Here are some pictures from 2018 - the year we adopted him. The third picture is Koda with one of his brothers.
Here are some pictures from 2019 - our last year in Raleigh.
These are just a few pics from 2020 - our first year in Hendersonville. Koda LOVED our back yard - and all of the great nearby hikes.
You can already see a few things- Koda was typically smiling and loved his pack mates. Here are some pics from 2021, below.
We were so surprised to see how much Koda loved snow. He got a good dose of it our first few years here. Now, on to 2022.
Sue was always trying to tame Koda’s curls - we had a lot of tumbleweeds of dog fur in the house constantly. Now - 2023.
If there was water on our hikes, Koda would find it. No matter what the temperatures, all Sue had to say is “go for a swim” and in he went - often lying down. Marlin, who is a lab, will wet his feet. Koda - a bit of a mystery breed mix, goes full immersion. The pic below is from this year - it breaks my heart - Sue’s last kiss less than 2 weeks ago. We will never forget our wonderful Koda.
