Joining the Family
Karlie joined our family at 4 months old. We adopted her to help our Border Collie, Anna, get over the loss of her sister, Jasmine. Although Anna only knew Jas for a few months, she depended on her and was lost without her. When Karlie’s foster mom contacted me about her, we scheduled a meeting for the two girls. It didn’t take long to see they were a great match so we adopted Karlie. That first night they wrestled until they passed out and then woke up and did it all again. Karlie was Anna’s first year birthday present, best friend, little sister, and sheep that she always tried to herd. It was fun watching them play, which they did for the next 11.5 years until we said goodbye to Anna.
Saying goodbye to Anna was hard for all of us, but especially for Karlie. Despite that we didn’t consider getting another dog because although Karlie loved Anna she was reactive to most other dogs. We knew she would be happier being an only dog.
The Start of Adventures with Karlie
I didn’t want Karlie to be lonely without Anna so we started to take adventures to keep her busy and both of us from missing sweet Anna. We explored canyons, parks, and trails all over San Diego County and Bloomington, Indiana. I spent a lot of time researching different places for us to go and each week we would go some place new.
Sadly less than a year after saying goodbye to Anna, Karlie started to slow down. We eventually learned she had geriatric onset laryngeal paralysis polyneuropathy (GOLPP), a degenerative disease that slowly took away her mobility. We managed her disease and all the ups and downs it brought for nearly two years before saying goodbye in February 2022. This website is my way of honoring her and trying to help others who are dealing with GOLPP or other diseases that affect mobility. I also hope to encourage people to get out and do things with their dogs. Lastly I want to encourage people to Live Like Karlie – do what you love, make the best of every day, and always smile.