Ghost Dog: My Best Friend and Dog Jasmine and the Tragedy that Killed Her

by Maggie
(Las Vegas)

One hot day, my brother had been playing outside, he came rushing into the house bursting with joy about how he had found a stray dog, who had taken refuge under my mother's car from the heat. I had a strong love for dogs and longed for my own, so I immediately ran out. I approached the car and to my pleasant surprise, there was a darling brown terrier mix, hiding under the car. I got flat on the ground and eventually coaxed her out. I brought her into my un-gated, backyard and gave her water and food.

My family was leaving to go grocery shopping so I put her into a box, hoping she would still be there when we got home. I was so anxious to get home from the grocery store. Upon our arrival home, I ran to go to the backyard and to my complete surprise, she was sitting, waiting for me, at the opening to the backyard. I played with her all day long. It was as if we had already been lifelong companions. My parents wouldn't let me bring her in, so she stayed the night outside, and again, I hoped and prayed she wouldn't leave, because there were no gates to my backyard.

I woke up early the next morning to check if she was there. She was patiently waiting at the back door. My mother felt sorry for her sleeping outside and waiting all night and, finally, let her in. My father tried finding her owner, but no on claimed her, and after my dad saw how attached we were to each other, he let me keep her. It was as if god had sent her to me, because he knew that she would affect my life greatly.

Ever since the day that we met, we were inseperable. She stayed in my room at night until I fell asleep, and then she would patrol the house at night to make sure I was safe. She would wait at the door for me to get home from school. When I went outside to play, she would come and if anyone tried touching me, she would nip at their heels. She was my protector.

When the family would leave, she would get anxious and dig her way out of the backyard, after we got a gate, and when we'd get home, we'd find her waiting patiently in the driveway. We once found her sitting and waiting on the corner to our street. She loved my family and she was my best friend, whom I shared everything with.

Then came the fateful day when she had followed me out the door, when I went to play. She never strayed far from the house. I had run to my friend's house and we were playing outside. I heard my brother scream my name, so I ran out of my friend's garage and he pointed to the house down the street, which was about four houses down from ours. To my complete horror, I witnessed my dog getting ripped through a gate, by a huge rotweiler and pitbull. She had tried to say hello to them, but greeted the wrong dogs.

I ran up the street screaming and crying her name. I reached the gate, but was helpless behind that gate. I screamed and cried for them to stop, but they tossed her around like a rag doll, taking turns ripping at her. I ran to the owner's door kicking and beating on it, screaming for help and kept ringing the doorbell to no avail. When I ran back to the gate, she was on the ground, lifeless and the two dogs who attacked her, looked at me in confusion.

I dropped to the ground, curled up into a ball and cried. The owner looked out and said "What's the problem?" His neighbor had witnessed the attack and told him. He slowly walked away from the window. I looked up to look at my precious Jasmine, and a spark of hope arose as she rose to her feet, looked at me, and ran to protect herself under a table.

The owner took forever to get her from the backyard and he just let her loose out the gate.
She ran for her life back to the house and I ran to follow. I found her scratching at the door. She was a bloody mess.

My mother opened the door, saw what happened and ran to grab a towel. I wrapped her up and picked her up into my arms and rushed to the car. My mother drove to the emergency room. Jasmine lay on my lap the whole way. My father was already there. My mom took her out and put her in my dad's arms and he ran her into the emergency room. The doctor observed her and whisked her away to get surgery. As he entered the room to put her into surgery. I took my last glimpse of her, said goodbye, she closed her eyes, and went under cardiac arrest as he walked through the door. I never saw her alive ever again. I had lost my companion and best friend.

She was the only one who ever gave me her undivided love and attention. My sister was causing trouble and my brother is the only boy in the family so I was placed on the back burner, my whole entire life. I had no one after she died.

We told the owner that his dogs had killed mine, and all he had to say was, "Oh." My mother told him to put a barrier around his gate, so that it would never happen again to anyone and all he did was put up a very short chicken wire.

I slept in my dad's room that night. My parents were divorced. I cried myself to sleep as my dad tried to comfort me. He knew he needed to be there. She was my dog and I was the only child truly affected by her death.

I woke up early and went into the living room. I sat on the couch and felt something jump up on the couch with me. A breeze crossed my face and it smelled just like her breath. It helped calm me.

That night, I slept in my room with the door open. Around the time she would leave my room to patrol the house, I started hearing her collar in the hallway. I sat up and I saw her apparition walking in the hall, passing my doorway. I ran out, called her name, and she was gone.

My dad got another dog, to try to help heal the pain, but for some reason, the new dog did not like me. The first day we got him, he ran into my room and hopped up on my bed. He started staring down at the side of my bed, where there was nothing and started barking with all the hair on his body raised.

It was Jasmine. She was still there and that's when I knew for a fact, that she would always be there for me. About a month later, our new dog ran into the backyard, because he saw something. My whole family was in the living room at the time and witnessed it. He heard a couple barks and he backed in slowly through the doggy door, fixated on something. Jasmine sized, in front of him. He backed a far distance into the hallway, still fixated on her spirit.

I called his name. He looked up at me and Jasmine disappeared.

I haven't experienced her since then. I still miss her dearly, even though it's been ten years. I still wake up crying from having flashbacks from when I saw her die.

My dad gave her ashes to me when I was old enough and her ashes always remain close to me.

R.I.P. Jasmine. We will meet again. I will always love you.