Hazel Bruner

On February 19, 2008, Hazel “LouLou” Bruner passed away.  She was with Dr. Rob at her clinic, which was her home away from home. 

Hazel was born in June of 1991, and celebrated her birthday on June 21.  She came to live with her human mom, Cynthia, late in 1991 at the age of six months.  By that time she had been a stray, been to the dog pound in Boulder, Colorado, and been adopted and then returned two times.  It was more than two weeks before she made any sound, and by that time she was Cynthia's dog for keeps.  She was not an easy dog, however…or a quiet one. 

Hazel destroyed things, and once tore the contents  viciously (and successfully) chased away other vehicles on the road.  This usually involved spotting a truck, spinning in a circle once or twice as it approached, and then throwing herself teeth first at the window with loud, snarling barks.  Then she would stand there, wagging, until she spotted another nasty truck.  The windows were always covered in dog spit and snot.

She also had something against traveling fast or making turns.  She would be mostly quiet over 25 mph, but at 25 she would start whining ferociously, and under 25 she barked without stopping...for miles and miles, hours and hours.  She began to equate the soft click click of the turn signal with making turns (and possibly slowing down), and would jump around and complain loudly whenever it was turned on.  Cynthia sold her car and bought a pickup with a topper.  The back of the truck belonged to Hazel, and the front to her chauffeur.  When any car trip was over, she would jump out and--one by one--bite and scratch at all four tires.  The she would trot away, head held high, triumphant again.  She once ripped a mud flap right in half.

The first year of her life she became car sick and vomited if she was in the car for longer than 6 or so minutes.  She spent a lot of time at home because of it, and her separation anxiety worsened.  That together with unknown troubles in her earliest life did not make her a very social dog.  Bored and lonely at home, distrustful and even snarly in public, and far too busy in the truck, Hazel had trouble fitting in.  She graduated from three dog training programs, and had no trouble learning, but once she was in a crowd (or a car) the old behaviors came back out.  However, she was always a perfect companion to Cynthia.  In the early years of her life, only Cynthia got to see what a good friend she was:  devoted, fearless, sweet, and funny.

She had some extraordinary talents.  In Colorado she was tested by a sheep-herding trainer, where the trainer said she’d never seen a dog with better natural talent.  In general, she had a tenacity that was hard to ignore.  Herding trucks on the highway and long camping trips chasing Cynthia were the only place those talents didn’t get her in trouble, and in those moments she was a happy girl.

Some of her best years came when she moved to Flagstaff, Arizona.  As she lived with a series of extraordinary roommates and one dogmate, Hazel’s little circle of trustworthy people began to expand.  Then Dr. Rob came along and all the rules changed.

She had been to Aspen Veterinary Clinic before, but had never seen the new vet.  As she did with every vet, Cynthia told him to put a muzzle on the dog before the exam, but by then Hazel was already wagging and looking lovingly into Dr. Rob's face.  No muzzle was needed.  At that meeting she required several x-rays, during which she loudly complained and peed on Dr. Rob and a nurse, and the dog and doctor got to spend a couple of hours of quality time getting to know each other.  Cynthia had a few hours in the waiting room to wonder just what kind of man he was, to have won Hazel over so fast.  He was the first vet she didn’t try to eviscerate.  It turned out that he was also the only human on earth who understand the necessity of attacking oncoming semi trucks and buses.  She trusted him like no one else.  For her last year in Flagstaff, Rob gave Hazel a horse, and she and Faye would run down the cinder basin trails for miles, ecstatic in the sunshine, keeping that horse on track.  She even got to chase steers a few times, and she was far faster than an old dog should be.

By the time Dr. Rob brought her to her own little Montana ranch, Hazel was an old dog.  Though she had always been a mostly indoor dog, she chose to spend much of the first year outside, surveying the territory, chasing birds, warning the UPS lady, talking to the horses, and doing rounds.  She stayed close to the house in case she was needed, and only once went on an unapproved excursion.  She had never, and would never run away again.  She took off in the evening and came home in the wee hours, looking pretty happy with herself.  Rob and Cynthia were not happy while she was gone.  Overall, she was an excellent ranch dog.  When Cynthia had human puppies of her own, Hazel truly became Rob’s dog (she believed that small children were okay, as long as they didn't bug her...and they often did).  She got her final job as guardian of the clinic, a job she really liked.  She took care of his clinic, took over his office, and in return she let him take care of the driving.  After more than a decade, she even stopped attacking oncoming traffic.

In her later years Hazel turned into a truly sweet dog, so that more and more people could see the loving critter she had always been for the people in her inner circle.  The people who knew her and loved her best were amused to hear that, in her later years, others found it hard to believe Hazel had ever been troublesome, or complicated, at all.  At the clinic she was gimpy with arthritis, deaf, and fairly blind.  But she always worked hard and took her work seriously.  She was friendly, too, even to strangers.  She got so warm and fuzzy it even began to show in her coat, which was a wonder to see and a pleasure to pet.

Hazel lived to be 16 ½ years old.  That’s a long life for any dog, especially a car-chasing, crazy heeler mix.  She had inspired countless songs, at least one novel, a marriage and a veterinary clinic.  She waited until the human pups were mobile and her new dog family, Monte and Kaibab, showed signs of protecting the family before she was willing to give up her job as Head Ranch Dog.  She taught them what path to follow when doing the rounds around the house.

The morning she passed away she went to work with Dr. Rob, and having decided that he could handle it from here, she moved on.  We are pretty sure that her first task in heaven was chasing Faye through jet black cinder hills under a blue sky.  She has human, feline, and canine friends to catch up with.  And it could not be heaven unless she has her own herd of sheep to organize at last.  Her back doesn’t hurt any more, her eyes are sharp and her hearing keen, and she has that psycho, happy, herding dog expression we will remember from her younger days.  Hazel will be missed by an awful lot of people who she once tried to chase away…or bite.