Cash came to us as a 9 week old pup. Andy named him Cash for unknown reasons but we soon found out that it took a lot of cash to keep him fed. At 117.5 pounds, he has been the biggest baby we've had. Unfortunately, he suffered severe anxiety, shaking and panting at any loud noise, thunder, car back fire, gun fire, and fire works. His fear caused him to lose control of his senses and destroy things in an attempt to find a safe place, even though plenty of places were provided for him; an insulated dog house, access to the storage shed, access to the tool shed and access to the covered porch, his anxiety caused him to tear through fences, including a chain link fence, also through screen on the porch, the underpenning and he scratched every vehicle we owned in an attempt to gain access to the inside. We treated him with tranquilizers, anti-anxiety medication, and anti-depressants, but nothing helped when a storm blew in. However, when the skies were clear, he was a wonderfully loyal companion. If I took a step, he took the same step, many times stepping on my heels. He stood steady and would let me lean on him when I was weak or needed a hand rail. He got along with the cats and was a sight to see when he played.

When Chloe and Cherry came to live with us, Cash was unsure about them, he didn't know what to do when they were around, so he usually ran, until he got used to their presence. They adored him, wanted to play with him, jump and chase him, all in fun. I taught him to wait until they were finished doing their business before approaching me so they wouldn't be distracted. He watched and would come at a wave of my hand to be petted by me and jumped on by Chloe and Cherry.

Though not a vicous dog, his bark gave visitors serious reservations about getting out of their cars. We had "beware of dog" signs posted to make people think he was threatening. But those that knew us, knew he wasn't a threat at all. His bark was certainly bigger than his bite.

Our decision to have Cash put down came on a stormy day. Doug and Andy had worked to enclose the back porch so we could have a seperate laundry room and so the dogs, all of them, would have a place to stay that they couldn't destroy while we were away from home. Cash gained access to the porch without our knowledge and once he started jumping on the back door and trying to claw his way inside, we realized he must have opened the porch door by himself. Doug closed the door and tried to make him comfortable, but his panting, shaking and coughing were uncontrolable. Soon he was trying to get off the porch, clawing at the door, trying to escape, Doug went out and sat with him in an attempt to calm his nerves, but not even that worked. We all felt sorry for him, his fear was enormous, so the decision was made that he was indeed suffering, that we had done all we could to help him and he would be better off in heaven. On December 23rd, 2002, we loaded him in the truck and took him to the vet where we left him, I cried, Doug nearly cried and we drove home.

I'll never forget him, or his loyalty.