Gregg Henson.com

Picture of the Mouse with her buddy!

Rest in peace my friend. My dog Mouse is gone 1993-2006

I know I've bored you with the details of my dog Mouse's long decline and I really appreciate you listening and sending your thoughts.  Most all of us have been touched by the death of a dear pet and my writing about Mouse is only my attempt to relate to what all animal lovers must eventually go through.  You can't have unconditional love from your pet and not have pain in the end.

Here are some of the postings over the last year as I chronicled Mouse's journey into old age.

August 2008

February 2009

February 2009 I

February 2009 II

I purposely haven't written about her over the last few months because your comments have been so nice and sincere that I didn't want to risk another false alarm.  I simply took the time to ensure her some quality of life until I was ready to make a decision for her.

After the deaths of my younger sister in 1999 at 25 and mom's tragic passing in 2006 followed by dad's demise in February of 2007 I am keenly aware Mouse is "just a dog."  But she was "just MY dog" for better or for worse.  When I adopted her with my buddies Tim and Shane in 1993 we made a commitment to care for her to the end and we each knew there would be a day too soon when we would part.  It was always assumed Mouse would go with me wherever I went, there was never a custody battle because I think my best buds knew I would put in the time, effort and love to make sure Mouse had a great life.  They would have done a great job too, but it was understood that I was "the crazy dog guy."  Since that time Tim has become "crazy dog guy."

I talked to my two former roommates tonight to inform them that Mouse had passed and they each were comforted that she was with me when she left us.  They both had so many great memories of our youth with that dog.  Tim, Shane and I used her endlessly as a puppy to meet girls but hey, it was the least she could do as we were paying the rent and feeding her Burger King hamburgers.

The decision making process started yesterday when I come downstairs ( she hadn't climbed the stairs in a year) to find mouse sleeping.  She never move the whole day.  I shook it off thinking "I've seen this before, she'll rebound."  She never rebounded and later yesterday she peed on herself trying to get up to go outside.  When I took her outside to give her a bath I noticed that she was nothing but skin and bones.  It wouldn't be long.  Later in the evening I took her outside to pee and she did, I went back inside to let her chill out with the other dogs, when I heard the sprinkler come on I ran outside to get her and she was in the same place I had left her, having been soaked by the sprinkler.

I brought her in the house, dried her off and put her on her bed for the night.  This morning not much had changed, she was sleeping and I notice her eyes were rolling rolling back in her head and I made the decision to end her suffering.

I called my brother Chris and asked him to come over and look at her, I called my sister and my brother in law (they are dog lovers too) and ask their opinion and the decision was made.  I couldn't keep her alive for me anymore, I needed to do the right thing to end her suffering. My sister Kim and Jon are amazing people who recently went through the same thing with their beloved pooch Porter and they counseled me to make the right choice for Mouse, not for me.  Thanks Jon and Kim for your clarity.

My big brother Chris was great, I called him and asked him to help me through this and he was there in minutes.  Nikki was no help because she was working at JJ and really didn't want to see Mouse go, so I didn't want to burden her with the details.  Nikki is a HUGE dog lover but she's way more pragmatic that I am and wanted me to end Mouse's suffering long ago.

Chris and I loaded Mouse into his car (I had my Jeep top off and didn't want Mouse to be in the 105 degree heat) at about 3:00 p.m. and went to Jungle Java so Nikki and the kids to say goodbye.  Nikki got in the back seat with her and lovingly said her goodbyes, Noah and Cooper kissed her on the head and said goodbye and Chris and I took her to the vet office.

When we arrived we were led to a room where I laid Mouse on the table and proceeded to stroke her head and tell her how much she'd meant to me all her life.  My whole body was screaming "get out of here, you don't HAVE to do this," but I knew there was no turning back, I needed to do this for my friend.

As I was kneeling down, stroking her head telling her how much I loved her, the vet took my hand place it on her emaciated stomach and said "feel her, you are doing the right thing."  I asked the vet to sedate her so she wouldn't feel the needle.  As she slipped off to sleep with me face to face, she picked up her head turned to me and touched my nose with hers.  I'd like to think she was saying goodbye.

A few minutes later the doctor came back and administered the shot that would end my friends life, as she slipped away, I held her tight and cried.  I can't describe the feeling of letting my friend go, at this point there doesn't seem like any peace for me but I know in the days ahead there will be.  She won't suffer any longer, she won't feel pain and she won't feel the indignation of old age, but tonight I'm still broken hearted wondering if I should have squeezed more days from her fragile body.

She is gone and tomorrow the sun comes up on the great life I lead, great family, great friends and two remaining dogs that I love but something will be missing, my youth.

Mouse has seen me come full circle, from a broke kid trying to break into radio, succeeding, failing and trying to get back into the career I so love.  Sometimes I wonder what she saw in those loving brown eyes.  She will never know how much she marked time in my life, she saw it all....from Michigan to Texas, to Philly and back to Texas.

I'll never forget this wonderful soul who love me unconditionally, welcomed my wife and children into our lives and never asked for anything but love, food and a stroke on the head.

Rest in peace old girl, I'll never forget your contributions to my life and hope I did the same for  you.  You were the best companion a guy could ever have.

Great new sports book.

While I was in Denver last week, I picked up a book called "Black 14."  It is the story of the University of Wyoming football team in the 60's and early 70's.

In 1969 a group of 14 black players on Wyoming's team asked Coach Lloyd Eaton if they could wear black arm bands in their game against BYU in protest of the policies of the Mormon church which didn't allow blacks to enter into the priesthood.

Eaton over-reacted and kicked all 14 players off the team immediately.  It ruined the program for years to come.

There are some fascinating things in this book.  I was never even aware that Wyoming was on the verge of becoming a national powerhouse in college football, I didn't know blacks couldn't be priests in the mormon church and I didn't have a clue about this story until I read the book.

Michigan native "Fritz" Shurmur was an Assistant Coach on the 1969 team and was hired a year later to clean up the mess left by the scandal.  Sadly his brilliance as a coach couldn't turn the tide as the black players who had previously embraced Wyoming decided not to play football there for many years after the incident.  They really didn't get back to winning until Paul Roach returned to Wyoming in 1987.

Funny too that there is a long list for Head Coaches who used Wyoming as a stepping stone to bigger and better jobs, Like Fred Akers who left after a year to coach at Texas, Pay Dye who stayed a year before taking the Auburn gig and Dennis Erickson who lasted one season before he went to Washington State.

The paperback is an easy read and it's a great story, if you are a college football fan you will love it.  I expect a Disney version soon.

If you'd like a copy of the book for free, I have posted mine on Paperbackswap.com.  If you sign up for free and offer a few of your own books to swap you can get my book shipped to you.

Drew Lane is back on WRIF

I got this e-mail from a WRIF listener.  It appears that Drew and Mike are reuniting on WRIF July 13.

Hey Gregg,

All of us at 101 WRIF appreciate your loyalty as a listener and member of the RIFF Cybercrew.   Our team here considers all Cybercrew members a part of the WRIF family.  Like any team member, we want you know about announcements and changes before you hear it in the news.   That's why I'm asking you to join us in welcoming Drew Lane back to the airwaves here at 101.1 WRIF as he reunites with Mike Clark to bring back Detroit's most popular morning show.     Drew's first day back on the air will be Monday, July 13th.     Your loyalty to WRIF Mornings over the past year has been greatly appreciated by Mike, Marc, Trudi and Jamie.

This news is a little odd.  It raises more questions than it answers.  Why is Drew coming back to the show that he left a year ago?  Is "Tess" all better now?  Does Drew need the money or just some time off?  Isn't the lifestyle still difficult?  What happened to a potential show with Mr. Skin?  Is Jamie Samuelsen staying or will he be a budget cut?

People have told me that there were "other" reasons that Drew left WRIF, I'm not going to go into them, but maybe he just needed some time off to get himself together, who knows.

Stay tuned.

Detroit radio ratings!

The latest Detroit radio ratings are in and the results are surprising in some areas, yet not so surprising in others.

WXYT became the # 1 station in Detroit and while it is a surprise, maybe it shouldn't be such a shock.
I never suspected the stations switch from AM to FM would propel it to # 1, I was certain it would mean the end of WDFN and it was, but going all the way to # 1 is a bit of a surprise.

WXYT likely got a boost from the Red Wing's Stanley Cup run and from residual Tiger listening, but congratulations are still in order for the Air Staff at WXYT.  Even without the play-by-play ratings, WXYT is still posting strong numbers in all its dayparts.  The morning show is strong, Karsch and Anderson are performing and Valenti and Foster are #1 in PM Drive.

Credit also has to go to Tom Bigby for getting everybody on the same page, it would be easy to write WXYT's success off as having a big FM signal, but clearly people are liking what they hear and WXYT now sets the standard nationally for sports radio ratings.  The Ticket in Dallas, WIP in Philly and WEEI in Boston are always strong in the ratings, but none have achieved the success of WXYT in DETROIT.  Congrats to WXYT for putting it all together.  Let's see if Bigby pulls the same trick in Dallas.

CLearly Tom Bigby is the top sports programmer in radio, he's now built two HUGE sports stations, WIP in Philly and WXYT in Detroit. The guy is tough but he knows how to win and his triumphant return to Detroit is a big win for all Detroit sports fans.

WRIF is still leaking listeners, while still # 1, the show is a shadow of its former self without Drew.  Mike in the Morning is a strong show, but listeners are clearly drifting from the old morning stalwart.

D & D are up at WCSX as well.

Check out John Smyntech's ratings wrap-up for yournews.com.

Palin needs to realize when enough is enough.

The "slutty librarian" really needs to realize that enough is enough regarding the David Letterman controversy.  You know I think he was an ass, but calling for his job and trying to get the guy fired is just a crock and she knows it.

I agree that his joke wasn't about rape, but it was still just mean spirited and not funny.  If he didn't understand that Governor Palin was at the game with her 14 year old daughter, I can understand that, but he should have made certain his joke was aimed at the adult daughter and not the teenager.

Palin is taking this thing too far and who could blame her, she's been the subject of some nasty commentary and is surly enjoying the payback, but enough is enough, we get it.

It is also being reported that Embassy Suites, part of the Hilton hotel chain has pulled advertising from CBS because of the joke. Are you kidding me?  There is no bigger embarrassment to the Hilton name than Paris, why worry about a couple of negative calls over Letterman's joke.

Here is the latest article.