Der Kaiser

Der Kaiser

By
Leo de Natale

He is age twelve and old. His muzzle is gray, has white whiskers and his body has changed. His name is Kaiser and he is a German Shepherd Dog. His life has developed a rhythmic pattern. Eat, sleep and tend to bodily functions. Despite his age, Kaiser is a happy dog. He gnaws his rubber peanut toys, constantly follows my wife Kathy-he’s a Momma’s boy- and is limited to increasingly shorter walks. No more romping around in our fenced backyard. His right rear leg is arthritic and loss of locomotion will probably be his undoing.

For now, we embrace the Serenity Prayer’s famous line, “Living One Day at a Time”. Kaiser weighs 70 lbs. and is considered a small male. His coat is called sable, not the Rin Tin Tin classic black and tan. Sable shepherds are more lupine in appearance; many people are intimidated by them. He is, in fact, though, a very goofy dog and loves to approach strangers. At our veterinary clinic he is treated like a rock star. Most of the staff are females and adore Kaiser. Before the Covid pandemic we’d watch him flirt with the ladies as he obligingly kissed and nuzzled them.

Kaiser is a rescue dog. We adopted him as a two-year-old. He was living in a New Hampshire double-wide trailer park. His bloodline was superb and his American Kennel Club(AKC) registered name was “Vino von Valtenstein”—breeders usually assign a letter to each litter. Vino was, you guessed it, from the “V” litter. Once purchased, he became Kaiser, a far more suitable Teutonic name. We know nothing about his first owner except he was scheduled for imprisonment on drug charges. The owner paid for basic obedience training but most days Kaiser was chained to a tree within the trailer park.

Our breeder Karen found him and whisked Kaiser away. There was a familial link. The breeder had sold us Kaiser’s aunt, Gundi. The physical resemblance between the two was uncanny.

“Kaiser is a good boy but needs some socialization,” Karen said. “He hasn’t been abused, more like neglected and not thoroughly trained.  He does know the basic commands  and  I think he and his aunt will get along well.”

We introduced Kaiser and Gundi at Karen’s training center. Female dogs usually dominate males and Gundi was no exception. With a few sideways glances, a couple of growls and some neck biting, she put Kaiser in his place. A bond was created and the pecking order established. The rescue fee was modest and we blissfully drove home. It was a treat seeing four canine ears in the rear view mirror.

The first priority was a veterinary evaluation. Kaiser had received the usual canine vaccines. He was an intact male and neutering was one of the first things on the to-do list. However, our veterinarian, Dr. Michaels, noticed two glaring problems.

“Our buddy  here has fleas”, he said while distancing himself to avoid infestation. “He needs a pesticidal bath ASAP.  This is common in dogs with his background.”

Dr. Michaels inspected his ears and discovered infections. Antibiotics and a thorough cleaning were necessary and through his lifetime the ears have been a continual issue. We still use special cleaners and medicinal drops.

I asked him about the neutering surgery.

“Oh, we can wait on that,” he said with a laugh. “His balls aren’t going anywhere.  Let’s first get the hygiene and medical issues squared away.”

Dr. Michaels said Kaiser was in pretty good shape.  His legs and hips were sound   — many German Shepherds have congenital hip dysplasia.  We should have good luck with him, he said.  Aunt Gundi and Kaiser became pals and chased each other in the backyard.

My wife and I have owned eight shepherds most of whom had a companion. I guess many persons in our neighborhood were intimidated by the sight of shepherds walking in tandem. Kathy is a professional dog trainer and all our dogs were friendly but their presence and bearing could be off-putting. According to the American Kennel Club’s breed guidelines, German Shepherds have “a certain aloofness that does not lend itself to indiscriminate friendships”. As the years passed many neighbors felt more comfortable but others still feared them because of traumatic childhood experiences. Breeds such as German Shepherds, Doberman Pinschers, Rottweilers and Pit Bulls have developed bad reputations.

During her long career, Kathy has learned the bad-boy dogs can be legitimate threats. The issue usually stems from poor genetics, lack of socialization or owner ignorance.

Also, buying purebred dogs costing $1,000 to $5,000 has prompted many people to adopt shelter dogs that have a much lower price tag. Dog bites sometimes stem from rescue dogs of unknown backgrounds. They are often from Southern states. Many of such dogs are Pit Bull mixes and owners take risks with these dogs of questionable provenance.

We have always fancied German Shepherd Dogs and have been lucky to own good ambassadors of the breed. Kathy often brought our dogs to her basic obedience classes. They were calm, non-reactive and friendly. One shepherd, Rex, had the classic look and majestic behavior. He posed for famous Polaroid photographer Elsa Dorfman who captured his regal but friendly nature. Puppies and owners would gather around Rex when he visited the puppy kindergarten classes. He was very approachable.

Kathy and I are at a crossroads. Boss Lady Gundi unfortunately died from a brain tumor in 2017 and Kaiser has been flying solo since. He will probably be our last shepherd. Owners grow older and age dictates what you can and cannot do with dogs, especially with large breeds.

Our attitude is to enjoy Kaiser for as many days, weeks, months he’ll be with us. We’ve all settled into a routine, especially since the Covid 19 virus arrived. Having a faithful dog has helped save our sanity. As he has aged, Kaiser has become an even softer more affectionate dog. He stares at Kathy and me with loving brown eyes that reveal developing cataracts. He is also stone deaf.

He still enjoys car rides but cannot jump into the back seat.  He now requires a ramp when loading and, once inside, loves to stick his head out the passenger window.  Many drivers passing us smile and wave.

The age expentancy for large breed dogs is between ten and twelve years. Kaiser is approaching the right parenthesis of his life and that is why we cherish every day he’s with us. We know the day will come for the long good-bye. We dread the inevitable. In the film Gladiator actors Djimon Hounsou and Russell Crowe’s Maximus ponder the brevity of a warrior’s life. Houndou says “We all will die….but not yet.”

In memory of Sarge, Buzzy, Helga, Rex, Dixie, Roxanne and Gundi.

Epilogue: The long good-bye occurred August 20, 2021. Kaiser was euthanized after degenerative spinal myelopathy affected his right rear leg. We are heartbroken and will miss him terribly.