I was really shocked and sad this morning to find out that my long-time blog friend, Saige the Irish Wolfhound – who lives in a beautiful faraway place called Nova Scotia – went to the Rainbow Bridge this past weekend. She was the most beautiful doggie and HUGE even by our giant doggie standards and she had been sickie for a while now. She went very suddenly and quickly – but she was just a few days short of her 4th birthday.
My beautiful friend, Saige...
Saige’s human has written a lovely post remembering her and she has a wonderful attitude because she is not feeling sad (although, of course, she misses Saige very much) but she is happy that Saige is at peace now – and most of all, that she had a short but very wonderful, FULL life – full of ‘Splorin Wolfie adventures – more than any doggie could want. That is what I would want my human to feel for me when it is time for me to go.
I have followed Saige on many of her adventures and I know she was shared in many of mine – and I shall miss her terribly. I know her brother, Guiness, will continue going on adventures in her spirit but he and their human will be taking a break from blogging for now. Farewell, sweet Saige – till we meet again…
******
One of the greatest tragedies of owning a giant breed is to know that your dog’s time on Earth is even shorter than most and their time with their families even more precious. We are constantly told, from the moment we bring home that little puppy with the huge paws, that their days are numbered – sometimes cut even cruelly shorter than the already short “average” by encroaching disease & illness that attack and devour that great body.
While Saige was taken much too early, this is sadly not uncommon in giant breeds. Most dog owners think of a dog at 4yrs as just entering their prime but we giant breed owners know that ours are preparing to enter middle age. Great Danes live on average 8 yrs (and I think Irish Wolfhounds even shorter) – and although people are always quick to point out an example that has lived to 10, 12, 14 – this is unfortunately the exception rather than the norm. Many of us lose our gentle giants even well before the “average” time. It is not about being unlucky or not feeding right or choosing the wrong vet care…it is just a reality we have to accept, a part of owning a giant breed. Sure, genetics play a part and this is again why it is so important to get a puppy from a reputable breeder who health tests their breeding stock – but at the end of the day, dogs were never meant to be this size. Dogs in the wild – those that Natural Selection created – are half this size. Sadly, extremes in any direction are never healthy. But I cannot complain…although I know with a scientist’s heart that it is wrong that they were created, I love Great Danes – and indeed, I have a soft spot for all giant breeds – and I can’t be sorry that they exist. But I do wish their great size and beauty didn’t have to come with such a curse.
Perhaps I felt Saige’s passing even more keenly because I have a big girl too. Honey will be 7 years old in Oct so she is fast approaching the dreaded “average” marker. Yes, she shows no signs of slowing down yet and seems in good health but we know our days with her are numbered.
Honey has been greying so slowly for the past few years (she started going grey from about 18 months!) that we have hardly noticed but just the other day, I looked at her and realised how grey she was becoming, how little of that beautiful dark mask she used to have was left.
In fact, we went to a Great Dane meet-up yesterday (will do a proper post soon) and I was a bit shocked when I saw her next to another young fawn Dane (also named Honey!) – to see just how grey my Honey was compared to the younger dog. Moments like that make you realise: ‘My God, my dog really IS getting old…’
Perhaps because Honey has lost none of her zest for life and is still as agile and active as she has always been (bar the occasional injury trying to climb trees after possums! 
) , I haven’t felt the passing of time as I should have. In my mind, she has remained a puppy still – and perhaps she always will to me. But I am looking at her now with new eyes and reminding myself to enjoy every day with her, to cherish every moment. I hope with all my heart that she will be here for many years to come and we will be able to continue sharing her adventures with you all but if she should go, I will be glad to know – like Saige’s human – that she has lived a full and happy life.
~Hsin-Yi
*****
OK – now that my human has made you all think sad, morbid thoughts – I’m back to tell you about something uplifting to celebrate! 
My great blog friends, the Schnauzer brothers, Max & JD, who live in the faraway place called England, have come up with a wonderful idea to help a doggie called Shelby who has had a very bad time and still needs help to get better. They have organised an exciting auction – to take place on the 28th/29th of Aug – and we can all support by either donating things to be auctioned or bidding in the auction (and telling our friends about this great event!). It was inspired after the wonderful GABE event when lots of doggies sent little pressies to each other. This time, we can all show the power of the paw again and each do our bit to help Shelby.
Please visit Max & JD’s auction site for more details!
Am preparing a special “K9 Aussie Experience” pack as my donation to the auction! 
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Oh! Before I go – I just wanted to clear something up in case there has been a misunderstanding from my last post. First of all, some doggies might have been confused and think that I am on an “all-meat diet” but this is not true. I am on the Raw Diet, which just means that most of what I eat is natural and fresh (or fresh frozen) and not made by humans in a factory, squeezed into funny shapes with chemicals added. Most of my diet is raw meaty bones (so lean meat, fat, skin, bone, cartilage, etc) – because in the wild, doggies would hunt down small animals as their main source of food – they would not be munching grass like cows or eating seeds and nuts like squirrels. However, doggies are also scavengers so they will also eat lots of other things, like ripe fruit and eggs and vegetable stuff digested in the stomach of their prey and even poo of other animals, which may contain minerals and other nutrients (sorry for those squeamish humans but this is true!).
So I do get vegetables and fruit and some grain in my diet. The only difference is that I am not on a “grain-based” diet – which means that I eat mainly raw meaty bones and other fresh things, with a bit of grain added (eg. cooked rice, oatmeal, sprouted grains) – as opposed to kibble which is mainly grain (eg. wheat, soy, corn, etc) with a bit of chicken or lamb meal added. My humans often give me leftover vegetables from their meals, like broccoli, carrots, cabbage, tomatoes, etc, and any ripe fruit too, as well as things like potatoes, rice, oatmeal, beans, etc.
OK, second – when my humans said they don’t believe in ‘supplements’, they meant the kind that comes in little pills and medicine bottles, from shops, which are again made by humans in factories. Or those injections that the vet wanted to give me. And in particular, they were talking about glucosamine and chondroitin supplements for preventing arthritis – because those have been shown in experiments not to have any preventative effect. It does not mean that other kinds of supplements (like fish oils) aren’t useful but they are for a different thing, not arthritis. My humans do agree that it is helpful to feed foods high in good stuff but they generally like to feed it to me in the natural form, if they can. So like they give me whole mackerel once a week because it is high in the good fish oils like Omega-3 but they would rather give it to me in the natural whole fish form than in a pill form. But of course, not everybody can find mackerel easily or feed it easily so it is fine also to give fish oil capsules if you have to. So my humans do give me ‘supplements’ but just in the natural form, for example, they add things like honey and apple cider vinegar to my meals because they contain good things for my health.
And about the question about the chondroitin & glucosamine supplements working in horses – again, my human says that people are confusing the difference between working AFTER you get the condition and preventing it BEFORE. The two are very different things. They’re not saying the supplements don’t work at all but the key is when. Yes, the supplements do work very well – on horses, doggies and even humans – AFTER they already have arthritis symptoms. But there is no proof that if you eat them while you’re still healthy, it will stop you getting arthritis later. In fact, so far the experiments seem to show that it makes no difference. It is like a towel will definitely help dry you off AFTER you get wet but rubbing yourself with a towel BEFORE you go out in the rain won’t stop you getting wet, no matter how hard you rub now. But many people think you should take supplements anyway – “just in case they work” – as long as they have no bad side effects. Well, my humans are happy to do that but they don’t believe that the factory-made supplements don’t have side-effects – so they think it is best to give me the “just-in-case” supplements in as natural form as possible. It just so happens that chicken feet is a natural source of glucosamine & chondroitin, so it’s a good compromise.
Of course, if I DID start to show signs of arthritis then my humans wouldn’t hesitate to use any of the factory-made supplements to help me feel better – but that is because they HAVE been proved to work in THAT case. They will work when I need them but not before I need them. Paul says this is called “evidence-based medicine” and it is usually the best way to do things.
Anyway, I hope that explains things better and sorry for any confusion!
I’m so sorry to hear about Saige. Her human sounds like she has a wonderful attitude about Saige’s death. So sad that Saige wasn’t around longer.
My dad has a beagle who is sooooooooo ancient. I keep wondering why she doesn’t just die already but then I feel horrible thinking that because I really don’t want her to die, of course! My dad also has a very young beagle dog. Seeing the two dogs together is a huge reminder of how old the ancient beagle truly is. I’m going to truly be sad to see her go. She’s been around a really long time. My father has had her for 14 years and she was an adult when he got her.
Thank you for the shout out about JD & Max’s auction for Shelby. I don’t know JD & Max but I’ve been following Shelby’s story and am thrilled that they’re doing what they can to help her.
I totally understood your point of view on supplements. Makes perfect sense to me! I sometimes wonder if I couldn’t be doing more for my little ones.
Oh I cannot even click over to read Saige’s owners post… I know I will be BOOHOOing!
Elle Woods just turned 3 and is definitely going gray… just like you sweet Honey she started going gray at a young age, but I definitely notice it more and more these days… especially when I take pictures using a flash for some reason.
But Honey don’t you worry about a little gray -- I think you look beautiful, mature, ad distinguished!
Can’t wait to hear more about your meetup with the OTHER Honey dog!
Yuh, momma tells me that even though I am only five years old I am already an old man doggie because I am so relentlessly huge.
Plus, it takes us giant doggies longer to grow up out of being puppies, which can be cute and fun, but it also makes our grown up life even shorter.
I have the grey furs too. Makes me look distinguished.
Slobbers,
Mango
I agree with legally fabulous my human would be sobbing away. even though I could help clean her up.LOL
My hunam lost her Min Pin just before me VERY un expectedly…he was mauled when he was having a little holiday in a kennel and he died. My sister Wanda saw it and Jeannette is sure she was traumatised too. It was nearly a year before she stopped crying out when they drove past.
Not a nice experience for them.
I turn 4 this month and I am greying too ! I say distinquished for a male.
lets hope rainbow bridge has a long road up to it for us .
hugs and pats from Jeannette and slobbers from me
So sorry to hear about your friend Saige! What a beautiful dog she was -- thanks for sharing a little of her story.
sorry to hear about Saige. we all know we’ll out live our beloved pets, that’s why we give them our best and love them to bits.
I am really sorry to hear about your friend! As for Hsin-Yi, our human had that same moment with the grey face and Sasha just a few months ago. Sasha is 10 years old (heeler) and the Vet told her that Sasha has the start of a the sore back sickie (arthritis). It made our human all sad because Sasha is getting old. We don’t understand what all the fuss is about. Sasha can still run rings around her… HA!
that is so sad. we wish we have known Saige and started reading her blog earlier. We love Nova Scotia. I like her human’s attitude.
Mom has a lot of learn from Saige’s mom and Hsin-Yi too. I just turned 4. Mom couldn’t even think about the fact that I won’t be around forever. She used to shed tears when cuddling with me and ask why dogs can’t live as long as humans do…
sigh…
kisses and hugs
Preston
Honey, when we read about Saige’s passing, we were all so sad. We thought all our big dog friends, like you and Mango and Lucille and Guinness and Groucho. Life is too short but we so hope all of you will be with us for a long time. We also hope that Saige’s family will find a way to keep the blog going.
Woos ~ Phantom, Thunder, and Ciara
Poor Saige. He is beautiful. But he is at peace and feels no pain. I am a big doggie too. But not that big. My breed lives about twelve years.
I hope you are feeling ok Honey. I know what it is like to loose a beloved friend.
I am sorry, I just realised Saige is a girl, and I was referring to her as ‘he’. My silly owner is typing this for me and made that mistake.
I saw the post about Saige this weekend! So sad. I was telling Jason, the hard thing about having a doggy blog and making so many friends is when they go to the Rainbow Bridge it’s just so sad! And then it makes me think of Darwin being a giant breed and I just have to go and give her endless hugs (even if she doesnt want hugs at the time). Even though their lives are short (which we took into consideration when we got her) I can’t imagine having a dog other than a Dane.
I am sooo sorry to hear about your friend Honey, very sad stuff. I lost my Doberman at the tender age of 7, suddenly, so we know how it feels and it sucks ass! (pardon my french). The note from your mom was lovely and I hope and pray you will live a long healthy life Honey. I do think your mum and dad are doing everything humanly possible to make it happen!
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh dear dear deaqr friends………
We’re soooooooooooooooo sorry for Saige…
Life is sooooooooo hard sometimes right???
We missed you tons…..
We were such a bad friends for you in the last month….but our secretary has been very busy at work so she hadn’t too much time for our friends and our blog!!!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr……
Bu now we’re back and we need to be in contact with you!!!!!!!!!!!
You’re soooooooooooooo special for us!!!!!
We love your pink bandana…you look soooooooooooooooo cute and beautiful!!!!
We know you’re living a wonderful time with your special humans and we know they’ll do the best gìving you the most fantastic life they could!!!!
We send you tons of love and kisses and special licks!!!!!
WE LOVE YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!
Take care of you dear friends!!!!!
MUAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
So sorry for the loss of your friend. Thor is our third Mastiff, one having lived 7 years and one having lived 6. Every morning, when the thump of the tail greets me, I am very happy, indeed. The glucosamine and chondritin does seem to have stopped Thor’s arthritis. He was not as good at getting up a year ago as he is now. So I agree with Paul about what we call “anecdotal evidence” (but I am not a doctor, and so not as smart as he is). Our boy is quite gray, too, but he sports his gray with pride! I’m hoping Honey does just as well as our Thor, because she brings you the same joy our boy brings us!
Hey Hsin-Yi and Honey,
I’m sorry that Saige passed away. A good buddy of mine just passed away not too long ago. In fact, I just posted a tribute to him on my blog. Missus tries not to think the negative stuff about me. All she wants is to enjoy and savour every minute, every seconds with me.
On a lighter note… yeah Honey, I noticed that you are greying around your face
The Missus also noticed some grey bits on me although it’s not obvious. Perhaps we should make a trip to some hair salon and get the hairdresser to ‘cover up’ our grey bits? And a bit of botox and collagen injections to firm up our jowls and erased the crinkly bits on our face? OK, I was only kidding. We think you still look amazing and booti-ful. You are aging gracefully and we love everything about you!!!
Love,
Homer
Very sad about Saige- I did not know her but have always loved her kind of doggie. That is wonderful that her human can be so strong about it. I know for a fact I will not be… I still remember the first time I was talking to Moose’s vet and she called him a senior. My gut reaction was to be angry and that she did not know him and he was young (she was a different vet that we had been seeing at that office) Of course a few minutes later I came to my senses but wow… very much like when you look at the same face you have seen every day and suddenly notice all the grey. I love the look and the personality that goes with a senior dog I just wish it did not lead where it inevitably does. It is amazing to think that some little doggies live twice as long as big doggies but I suspect it always feels too soon and although it will be so hard to lose a friend I have had for 7 years I can only wonder if it isn’t even harder when you have had that friend for 14. In many cases that might have spanned so many important life moments and might be the most prominent tangible link to that time gone past. For me that would be a dog that I had through grad school, a very serious boyfriend and breakup and my mother’s illness and passing. Although I could say that I was happy my friend lived so long I can’t imagine how hard that would be. I am not sure I am making sense and having zero experience in either I can’t say whether it is better or worse. I will say that picking a dog breed because it will live a long time would not make for a happier situation or ending (I know you are not suggesting that) so I 100% agree that enjoying every minute is the way to go!
Anywho. Just wanted to add my 2 cents. I don’t blame people for missing this detail because it certainly is not something the supplement industry is eager for you to know!
Lots of babbling as usual.
I have not read your last post yet but will add that my human and vet doctor both told me that glucosamine does nothing to prevent but can be excellent to diminish the pain from arthritis. Case in point. Moose and I taking the same glucosamine… I never felt any change in my knees (that make horrible creaking noises when I go up stairs) but can definitely notice an improvement for Moose and when I goof and get lax on giving it for a few weeks I get reminded to get to the store when I notice his knee not tucking in so tightly. The difference? Well I asked my dr and he said “you don’t have arthritis, at least that is not the creaking sound”. As for Moose, his X-rays show mild arthritis in that knee from the torn CCL. So there you have it… Works for Moose who has arthritis. Zilch for me who does not have it. From reading up on it I have also learned that giving too much is useless, espsecially Chondroitin, because it is a really large molecule that can only be taken up at a certain rate- after that it is peed out! At the price of some of those supplements that is liquid gold too!
Oh and I meant to say that young Honey is a very pretty girl but where is her bumpkin? And what is with no slobbers? I think she has some more growing to do to be as beautiful as you, the one and only original Honey!
We are sorry to hear of Saige’s passing. It is so very hard on our humans when we go.
Oh Honey, we’re so sad about your friend Saige. She looks like such a beautiful doggie. It’s so hard to lose a friend and must be even more difficult for her owners. Our thoughts are with them.
As for you, I say you’re as young as you feel, grey hair or no. No doubt your healthy diet has helped keep you in top shape and my human always learns a lot from your human, whether it be about diet or training.
Love, Oscar and the gang
It makes Momma cry to hear of a loss of another Doggie. She wishes we could all live forevers.
woof -- Tucker
Oh, I am so very sad to hear about your sweet, beautiful furend, Honey. It’s never easy to say good-bye.
And if it makes you feel any betters, Hsin-Yi, Brudder Ranger is about Honey’s age and has gotten lotsa grey on his face in the last year, too. And rat terriers can lives 15-18 years! So what’s a little grey?
Wiggles & Wags,
Mayzie
Oh…I had no idea about sweet Saige…I was too consumed with Nala’s problems…I must go over and give my condolences. How sad and yes, I agree with you and think you put it very well when you said it was a tragedy that our precious pup’s lifespans are so short. That’s why it’s even more important to make their days here special and full of life.
Amber
Oh my heavens, we are heartbroken. We didn’t know about the loss of Saige, such a beautiful girl.
We are off to pay our respects.
So sorry for your loss. It is so sad to lose a loved one, furry or human xo