Mark Buerhle will leave his pit bull behind along with his family as he gets set to play for the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2013 season. Though he had a couple of months to make a decision, Buerhle's facing the toughest choice of his career as he was forced to leave his loved ones along with his favorite pet pit bull Slater.
Buerhle will have to leave his two-year-old American Staffordshire terrier and bulldog mixed dog Slater with his family as he pitches for a new team.
As a former member of the Miami Marlins, Buerhle's contract was handed over to the Blue Jays' this offseason and that's when the tough decisions began.
But can't he just take his dog with him?
Well, that's the complicated part. By law, pit bulls aren't allowed in the province of Ontario. Buerhle had limited options, but a decision had to be made before the beginning of the year, at least for peace of mind.
(CLICK HERE TO SEE A PICTURE OF THE PIT BULL)
So these were the options.
Move to an area outside of Ontario where Buerhle could live his family and dog but have to drive over an hour each way in order to get to the Blue Jay's ball park. Option 2 was leaving Slater the pit bull behind with another family, basically hiring a dog sitter for about nine months and Option 3 was leave Slater in St. Louis where Buerhle's wife, Jamie, could stay taking care him and their family.
Though tough as nails, Buerhle made the only logical decision, Option 3. However, this involved Buerhle not only leaving his pit bull behind, but his kids as well.
He has a three-year-old, Brooklyn and five-year-old Braden that he will have to stay at home with mommy. It will be a dramatic change, but as a professional, Buerhle will try to master it all. Being away from his family is one thing Buerhle is not looking forward to.
"I know it's part of baseball and every person deals with it," Buerhle began, "but this is our first time being away from each other all season. We're going to travel and see each other and make it work. But those nights when we have a Sunday day game and I can go home and have dinner with the family and give the kids a bath and put them to bed, that's what I'm going to miss."
If the Blue Jays succeed, it would be less painful to be away from his family. The Blue Jays are set to take the MLB by storm as they have added Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson along Melky Cabrera and R.A. Dickey. There will be a ton of new players changing to a new scene, so Buerhle will not be the only one dealing with the situation.
For now, Buerhle might have a chance to say good bye to his pit bull as Spring Training is kicking off in Florida. However, as he shifts his mind into baseball, Buerhle will begin making the adjustments of living without his kids and his beloved pit bull.
