Hyacinth Bucket's Saga - VI - Soul Searching

Everything about Hyacinth’s Saga has just been an emotional roller costar. Since receiving Hyacinth Bucket’s ashes, I have been trying to respond back to Norm. In doing that, I am been doing a lot of research. Some of which have taken me to roads not anticipated. I don't want to get into any details.

Besides researching, I have been trying to figure out what is the point. What is the point of all of this? I have finally put it into words: I want safty, compensation and closure. But what does that mean? It means so many different things to so many people so lately I am been doing a lot of soul searching and trying to figure out what that means to me.

Secret Lives of Pretty In Pink Dogs

Hyacinth Bucket's Saga - Part V - The other Havanese

I am saddened to say that my Hyacinth Bucket’s death wasn’t the first in Norm’s care; but I didn’t know. I regret I didn’t ask around about Norm. I am sure if I would have known, I wouldn’t have left Hyacinth in Norm’s care. C, another Havanese breeder, encouraged me to use Norm to have him show Hyacinth in the US so she could earn her American title. I trusted C, and she trusted him, so by association I entrusted my Hyacinth in Norm’s care. Ultimately, I feel betrayed.

The other dog that died over a year prior to Hyacinth’s death was also a Havanese, a male. He was six month old. I have no idea if he was at his first show or not. I understand the dog was being groomed on the grooming table and he was tied to the attached grooming arm. Possibly, due to miscommunication, who knows, no one was watching the six-month-old Havanese. Apparently, the dog jumped and strangled himself.

You hear these sorts of stories and think that yes, this could happen, but no one leaves dogs on tables unattended. It is like saying ‘be careful with that, you could poke your eye out’. No one accidently actually pokes their eye out while playing with whatever.

When I first heard this story, my heart dropped.

For the longest time I thought I was the only one who is going through or went through something so outrages with their dog. In one way, it is good that I am having so much trouble finding others who have gone through something similar to what I have gone through and am still going through; but in another way it sucks, as I can’t really talk to someone else who has been in my shoes to share feelings or share pain. I guess its true, misery does like company.

If the owner of the other Havanese ever reads this, you are more than welcome to share. Other people with stories are welcomed too.

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Haycinth Bucket's Saga - Part IV - What Happened Continues

Previously:

• Hyacinth Bucket's Saga - Part III - What Happened?

Hyacinth

A few days after Hyacinth’s untimely and tragic death, maybe more, I can’t remember, I called C to chat, since she said I could call at anytime. C uses Norm as a professional show handler extensively and apparently lives very close to him. Her own daughter works for Norm. C, another Havanese breeder, was the one who insisted that I send Hyacinth to Norm so he could show Hyacinth in the states. C said that she went over to inspect his kennel and to talk to him. She told me more on what happen. According to C, Norm had done his morning chores in the kennel (I didn’t ask for any details about his morning chores) and that everything seemed fine. He left the kennel and went into his house which is on the same property to have some breakfast. She said that he said that he heard barking coming from the kennel and looked out the window. He didn’t see anything so he continued to eat his breakfast. He heard barking again and then proceeded out to the kennel to see what was happening. C said that he found her in another dog’s run, grab her and ran to the house yelling for help. When he reached the house is when they realized Hyacinth was already dead.

I didn’t hear this story from Norm, I heard it from C. It would have been better to have heard it from him.

C described the kennel, it’s an L shaped kennel. Norm keeps his own dogs in one wing and his client dog’s in the other wing. I have since learned that L shaped kennels often have dividers such as a door separating the two wings with a room of sorts between the two wings. I don’t know for certain that his kennel was set up the same way but most L shaped kennels are.

C kept going on about how his kennel is inspected every year and how clean it is. I don’t care how often his kennel is inspected or how clean it is, it is not like I am ever going to send another one of my dogs in his way to be handled again. My dog is already dead and therefore inspections and cleanliness is rather irreverent now. The conversion continued but that will be for another time.

So let us recap: First, Hyacinth not only got out of her run, somehow and unexplainable. Escaped not only from her run but also from her side of the wing into the other wing where she all of a sudden decides to pick another run to somehow and unexplainably escape into? Why? I remember Hyacinth being a bit shy to large dogs. So again I ask, why in the world would she try to get into another run while another dog, a Shar Pei (a large dog), was already in there?

• So between eight in the morning and two-thirty in the afternoon, why did it take so long to call me?


• How did she really get out of her run?


• Why in the world would she have gotten into another dog’s run in the first place? And all by herself too.

What happened?

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Hyacinth Bucket's Saga - Part III - What happened?

People keep asking me “What happen?”. How did your beautifuly Havanese girl die? The truth is I don’t know. I don’t think I will ever know what really happened and I have resigned to the thought, the idea, that I will never truly know. All I know for sure is that on November 11 at about 1:30ish pm central, 2:30 eastern, I received a call from Norm telling me that he has some bad news to tell me; it’s a phone call I won’t soon forget. Norm begins by telling me that he has some bad news. ok, I replied. He said that he that he didn’t know how Hyacinth got out of her run. My first thought was ok so go find her, then my thoughts immediately starting jumping to all sorts of possible conclusions to that statement. Ok I finally replied again. He then said he didn’t know how she got into another dog’s run. I was silent has my heart dropped and I braced myself for what could possibly come next after a statement like that. Norm carried on with his story; he said that there was a dog already in the run; a Shar Pei he added. The Shar Pei killed her he continued.

At that moment my world turned up-side-down. It eyes poured like Niagara Falls as I whaled with grief on the phone. He was silent as I cried uncontrollably. The phone call continued, he said that he would refund my deposit right away. He asked if I still have the mother and if she was still open; and that he would pay Hyacinth's stud owner for a repeat breeding, so I could try to get her back. Even then I couldn’t believe he would even talk or suggest any compensation after just telling me my dog died in his care. My dog died - give me a moment. Those sorts of conversions are best left for another day and not when someone is having an emotional meltdown.

Thinking about that later.... A repeat breeding? Try to get her back? What was he thinking? Hyacinth Bucket is no more and nothing is going to get her back. She was first my loving pet and a show dog second, and future breeding bitch. As an adult show dog with a successful show career with many health tests already done and passed; and a bright and exciting future ahead of her.

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Hyacinth Bucket's Saga - Part II - Loved by

Previously:

• Hyacinth Bucket's Saga - Part I - No Name
  

The next part of Hyacinth Bucket's cremation certificate, from the Ontario Pet Cremation Services, is even more upsetting, it says “Loved and Cherished Always… Norm ~”.

The first part of the cremation certificate where it only stated “puppy” as the dog’s name instead of her name was already very upsetting. Then to see the handler’s name there instead of mine makes me mad. Norm only knew her for just over a week and a bit. He was to show her in the states so she could earn her American championship title.

He didn’t cherish her; he barely knew her. Hyacinth Bucket was just another client’s dog to him. She was my dog. I cherished her. I loved her. Hyacinth was “Loved and Cherished Always…” by me – Not Norm!

There was 50 days since the first and only phone call I received from Norm (where he told me Hyacinth died) and the arrival of my dog’s ashes; and I had not heard back from him. I had sent one e-mail message asking for details on what happen and two phone calls (I left only one message). I was getting tired of his silence so I sent him a registered letter where he had to sign for it so I could feel assured that Norm indeed received my letter. I believe it is because I sent Norm a registered letter that I finally received any response back from him, a letter within the registered package of my dog’s ashes.

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Hyacinth Bucket's Saga - Part I - No Name

Hyacinth Bucket’s ashes are finally home, exactly 50 days since her untimely and tragic death. They arrived on New Year’s Day making the new year’s eve a bit of a solemn time. It arrived via Canada Post’s Priority Courier and a signature was required.

A card was inside from the Ontario Pet Cremation Services, their cremation certificate. The cremation certificate is worthless because her name was nowhere to be found on it: neither her registered name nor her even her call name, Hyacinth. Just “Puppy”, that’s all the certificate has for a name.

Besides giving the conspirators something more to talk about, I want to make it clear that she had a name: a beautiful name and a funny one too. Her name was Ch. Hydabrek’s Hyacinth Bucket and we called her Hyacinth. I sometimes called her Hyacinth Bucket; pronounced as “Hyacinth Bouquet”. She was five days short of reaching 15 months. Hyacinth had an amazing puppy career early last year: she won Best Puppy in Show twice, won Best Puppy in Group 12 times (should have been 13 times but that's another story), and won numerous group placements. She had starting obedience training and I had such high hopes and dreams for her performance career.

She loved sleeping on the bed with me, taking walks with Josie and my hubby, playing with Caillee, and torturing the cat. She loved people, car rides, bacon, balls, and anything that squeaked.

You see the word “Puppy” doesn’t due her justice, her name should have been on the certificate. Her name deserves to be said aloud. Her name was Hyacinth.

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41 days and counting...

Forty-one days today and counting, still no sign of Hyacinth’s ashes. I am hearing from everyone else but Norm himself.

What conclusions am I suppose to draw at this point?

All I can think of right now is how it is affecting me emotionally and how all this feels. It feels ugly.

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HFC's HAV NEWS and VIEWS arrived.

The Havanese Fanciers' HAV NEWS and VIEWS, issue 35, Winter 2008, arrived today; I saw it as soon as I got home and it was a most difficult issue for me to read.

I was very touched to see Hyacinth's photos on the front cover; they used my most favourite photo of her, as seen here.

Inside there was two more photos of her: one that was taken for the FROM NOSE TO TAIL grooming book but was never used; and another that was taken and I think was used for the HFC's christmas cards last year when she was just a wee puppy.

The Chief Editorial Comments area included a heart-felt condolence.

There was also a most wonderful poem from a special person wrote this poem just for Hyacinth and it was titled " A Very Special Flower". So very touching, to say it brought tears to my eyes would be an understatement. It was so very, very touching and sweet; and it reminds me so much of how much I miss my Hyacinth.

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Interesting Photo of Hyacinth

When you have a dog with long hair, it just begs to be played with. I like making the bug antennas. They are fun to watch on my dogs and fun to create. I still do them on Caillee once in a while. Hyacinth never minded me playing with her hair. This is one thing of many I will miss.

I have no idea where hubby had these photos..... I am glad he found them and shared them with me.

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Conspiracy theory: Hyacinth Bucket was stolen

Some people have suggested that my Canadian championed Havanese may not have died but may have been stolen.

Next Tuesday will be three weeks since Hyacinth’s demise and I still have not received her ashes which doesn’t help to dispel this theory.

Known: November 11, I received a call from the professional handler who was showing my Hyacinth Bucket in the United States so she could earn her American championship telling me that she had died. They were between shows at his kennel. On the phone he explained that he didn’t know how she got out of her run and into another dog’s run where she was then attacked by a Shar Pei who was in that particular run. More...

As much as I would like this conspiracy theory of Hyacinth Bucket was stolen to be true because it would mean that she is still alive and there is hope of her return in the event that she is found. Unfortunately I feel this conspiracy theory lacks merit for the following reasons:

My husband made me call the vet office she may have been taken to for cremation to see if there was indeed a Havanese cremated recently, there was a Havanese puppy brought in November 20th. I have to assume this “Havanese puppy” is my Hyacinth Bucket.

The dog is micro-chipped and is registered under my name. The registration name cannot be changed without my knowledge. If someone is stupid enough to steal the dog, then they are stupid enough to get caught.

This dog has been blogged about and photographed since the day she was born. She was even used as a model within the pages of the Havanese Fanciers’ From Nose to Tail Grooming Book; Hyacinth is not the Havanese on the back cover even though she looks similar in colour to that Havanese. Therefore, the chances of this Havanese being recognized within Havanese circles is potentially higher than a not so photographed Havanese.

Suppose someone had stolen Hyacinth so they could breed their own puppies. They won’t be able to register her puppies. If you cannot register her puppies then why steal a championed Havanese?

Why steal a championed Havanese? Un-reputable breeders can find many other ways to get a hold of breeding stock without having to resort to stealing even though it is a held-fast perception.

There are a number of commercial breeders who buy and sell puppies in well organized auctions across North America. In one day, anyone can walk away with enough dogs of any sex or breed to start their very own puppy mill.

They can save a bundle by going through these auctions or by dealing directly with commercial breeders or brokers. They save even more money by not doing any health testing and making the dogs live in small cramped spaces their whole lives.

They often say that they are saving you money by not registering your purebred puppy when in fact they are required by law to register at no charge to you. Oh yeah, the main gist of “this law” is applicable in all countries across the world.

So, if you can acquire any sex of any breed and as many as you want, then why steal this one championed Havanese?

Secret Lives of Pretty In Pink Dogs