Heidi Sparks
BVISS UKC CH CH CIAR MES YEUX VIGILANTS DE ERANDI TT CGC TDI
January 28,2007 – October 16,2020
Known and loved by those who knew him as Bubba. On October 16, 2020 I rushed Bubba up the mountain to our vet as he had suddenly started to bloat for a third time. We stopped the bloat, but after running blood tests, it was determined that he had leukemia of the liver. Due to the painful progression of the disease, the vet recommended that I let him go. So I held him close as the most amazing dog I’ve ever known, peacefully slipped away.
Bubba had fans everywhere we went. When I got Bubba from Susan Bass at eight weeks old, the plan was to train him in protection. God, however, had other plans for us. When Bubba was about four months old, I was severely injured in a car accident. I began to have problems with dizzy spells, falls, and my back randomly locking on me. It was determined that a Service Dog would be very beneficial for me. I was unable to get funding for the training of a Service Dog, so I set about training my own with Bubba. He proved to be an excellent learner. We became such a intuitive team that Bubba would realize I was going to move before I had even made a conscious choice to move. He would get out of my way and stand ready to assist me if needed. He also was intuitive to those around me as well. At the VA, he would go up to Vets that needed his loves, and a lot of times they would thank me with tears in their eyes and tell me that was just what they needed. Bubba earned me the nickname of the Beauceron Lady.
He was in all respects a perfect gentleman. Always gentle with the other dogs in the house and patient with their antics. He was a brother to my daughter Eran and an uncle to the grandbabies. For more than 12 years, he was by my side everywhere I went, ready to help or protect me wherever our travels took us.
He had a couple moments of fame. One was the day I saw a picture on the AKC website representing the breed, and wondered why does that dog looked like my dog. Only to realize on closer inspection, that it was in fact, my dog in a lovely photo taken by our friend Kent behind the livestock barn at Greeley. I had forgotten he took that photo. His other moment came in the form of the Beauceron Blend coffee label from Black Dog Coffee Traders.
Bubba was also a dual champion show dog. He taught me patience. He took eight years to finish in AKC due to lack of competition in our area. I’m so very proud of the things we accomplished together and that he was an amazing breed ambassador!!! I’m proud to say that even with limited showing, we managed to place in the Top 3 for NOHS all four years we competed and we finished at #1 the last two years. Our crowning achievements though, were our first National Specialty, which was also his first time out as a special. He was awarded Best of Opposite to Best Veteran in Sweeps, and then went on to earn an Award of Merit in an incredible lineup of dogs. As if that wasn’t exciting and amazing enough, we then somehow managed to be awarded Best Veteran in Specialty Show at our Journee!!!
I’m so very proud of all that we accomplished together and will forever miss my “bestest boyfriend” who took a chunk of my heart with him as he flew away. I look forward to the day we’re both reunited in heaven along with my other best boy Cam.
