Luckily our Labs are young, so we won't have to go through more old age loss any time soon. Jackson is almost 9 months, and Bailey is 3 1/2 years, so they will hopefully be around for many years. We got Jackson to keep Bailey busy, last October. We were sure Maggie was on her last leg at that point, but she surprised us! We got new pain medicine for her at about the time Jackson arrived, and she was running around like a new dog again! So, she has had a few really good months, and I can't ask for more than that. We won't get another dog after Maggie is gone. Two very active Labs are plenty for us!
My husband sounds like your husband! This is our third attempt at retirement, and I think this one will stick. The last one failed due to boredom. Now that we have acreage to take care of, it keeps him busy, and I can't imagine how he could get bored here! He was medically retired after 24 years in the Navy, in 2002, due to very bad ankles. They fixed one, but that took over a year of him not being able to walk. After that, it wasn't strong enough to fix the other one, so they retired him. He taught navigation at the University of Utah for 4 years, at the ROTC, and decided that he didn't want to teach again, so the VA sent him to college. That is when he got his A & P license, because they wouldn't pay for flight school. Still can't figure out why he wanted to be a pilot, but it's what he wanted! After realizing he didn't want to work on planes, he got his degree in geography. This retirement better stick because the closest place to work is a really long drive!
