When the sun rises, we have no idea what's in store for us that day. It could be a typical get your son out of bed and to school (hopefully) on time kind of day, or it could be a day that's filled with fun and adventure. Or it could be one of those days that you just want to stay in bed. Recently I had a couple of the latter days happen. We unexpectedly lost one of our dear pets, then 3 weeks later, we lost another one. Both our dog and our older cat were found to have cancer. Our cat, Tabitha, was 15 and losing lots of weight over a couple of months. She gave us a few weeks to realize we had to let her go, as everthing the vets tried to do to help her was not helping her. But our equally beloved dog Blu - we had no idea he was ill and within a matter of hours one night, we had to say goodbye.
For those of us who truly love our furry family members, you will understand why I found myself pulling the covers over my head and just hoping I had had a bad dream. Letting my hand out from under the covers and laying it beside the bed, hoping to feel that wet nose touch it one more time. I am still devastated by this loss and now having had to say goodbye to our cat, I feel like I'm crumbling inside. I know it will take time, but my heart misses them both so much.
A couple of weeks ago I began writing about Blu. For pet lovers, I share this with you, as you will understand.
ODE TO BLU
Waking up in the morning with you was like having a soft
alarm go off, one that nuzzled me with a wet nose at 6:30a.m., every day
break.
Still lying in bed, I would open my eyes and say, “Good
morning Blu,“ as you peered sweetly into mine in hopes that I would quickly rise to
begin our day together. I would touch
your velvety head and ears, as many times I would hope for a few more minutes
to wake up, so you would kindly go back to your soft pillow at the end of my
bed and wait patiently for my feet to slowly come out from under the blankets.
Once up, you would dash down the stairs. I would hear thud, thud, thud, your legs
inevitably missing one or two of the steps as you anticipated the outside door
opening and your first smell of the fresh morning air hitting your face. Okay, you just needed to go to the potty, but
I could tell you loved the ritual too.
Then of course, you would come bounding back inside to find your food
dish with heart meds waiting for you to devour.
As I would scurry around, getting the cats their food and
Zach up for school, you would follow me around the house. I don’t know, maybe hoping that some of the
cat food will finally today be yours, or maybe it’s just how we danced. Your large body always lying in the doorway
between the kitchen and dining room, many times I would trip while trying not to
step on you. You lay there, trusting
that I would not.
When I would finally head out the door to take Zach to school,
your eyes would look so wantingly to hear the words “Do you wanna come”? I would usually wait until the afternoon to
take you when it wasn’t so cold outside, but you never stopped giving me that
look. I would tell you I’ll return soon
and you would give me a “woof” as I locked the door behind me.
I’ll never forget the day you came home with us. You jumped into our car as if to say, “Let’s
go on this new adventure!” You looked
back at your old family with a sad look, then you began a new life with
us. Being adopted, I felt we are kindred
spirits, but your story was much different than mine. You were 5 years old when we brought you
home, the same age as our son Zach. You
flawlessly slipped into your role as “our” dog.
You instantly became a part of our family with so much love and enthusiasm!
We were told that your name came from your once puppy blue
eyes. We loved your name because WE ARE
Michigan Wolverine fans and we would say, “Let's Go Blu” all of the time! More fun came when we adopted a little gray kitten a few
years later and named her Maizie (Maize and Blu).
You came with many toys; balls, bones, leashes and such, but
your favorite was the bad cuz ball. We had never heard of this, but the devilish
(blue, red, green or orange) ball (a ball with feet and little horns) was your favorite. You wouldn’t even pick up another kind of
ball - silly boy! So whenever you would
lose a ball in the woods, we knew that we had to replace it with a bad or good
cuz ball. Otherwise it was a waste of
our money. I remember one time you played
fetch in the rain for 4 hours when we had workers at my dad’s house. They would
throw the ball every time they went by you and you just kept bringing it
back to whomever would throw it again! You were so tired that night, but
loved every minute of that day.
It was so wonderful having you at my office that first year
you came home with us and now that I’ve been working at home, I’ve treasured
having you here all of the time. I think
you felt the same, letting me know you were there checking on me, but most
importantly, you would alert me if anyone was outside, like the mailman. I had to laugh when the mailman said he
thought you were a mean dog by the sound of your bark...ha ha…far from it, just
a great protector!
You were so smart Blu.
You didn’t respond to the word “speak” when you came to us, almost
like you wanted to resist it, so I taught you the word “woof” and you began to
let out a little woof here and there - and if I kept asking, it will become a big
WOOF! Within this last year you started
to howl, which always made me howl! It
was so funny to hear you do this, but it was almost like you were embarrassed to let it out
and if I dared laugh, you look so sad, that I had to hold in my
laughter even more! Oh, I love you
Bluie!
You always loved going for a walk and all it would take was grabbing
the leash and you are bouncing around the house! You were usually so good about staying with
me in the yard, but there were a few unscheduled trips through the woods, down
to the river and somehow you always come out the other side in the parking lot
of the Denny’s restaurant! It was so
frustrating, because I would always worry that you would be picked up by
someone and taken home with them. The
best thing I ever bought was your dog tag with my phone number on it. Thanks to the many wonderful people who used that number to let me know that they found you. I’ll never forget the time I got a call at
3a.m. when I was in Hawaii, when you decided to go on an adventure just before
your doggie caretaker was to leave for her work! Thankfully we all connected and you were
found, again at Denny’s!
The secret to keeping your attention - treats! You LOVED your treats! Sit, laydown, stay, woof, shake, give me a
kiss…you would do anything for a treat!
One of the smartest things you ever did was to humbly let
the cats rule the house. Even though you
were 8 times larger than they were, you would let them pass by, use your big
pillow (little cat on a BIG pillow, so funny to see with you laying on the
floor next to the pillow). You seemed to
have this respect for them, even when they would whack at your tail whenever
you would walk by. You were such a good
boy.
Sometimes you were such a lab too. Like getting water all over the floor in the
dining room, kitchen and sometimes all the way into the living room after you
took a drink! We may have commented, but
never did we complain.
“Do you wanna go for a ride?” or just picking up your leash
would get you sooooo excited! The way you would hop into the back seat of the
van and look out the back window at the cars.
It was so sweet and I know you made a lot of people smile when they saw
you. Woof, woof! You would say to anyone
passing by the car.
I loved it when you would put your chin on my foot or leg, so
you could be closer, as if to say, “Can I come on the sofa with you?” Oh those sad eyes, how you could make
them work for you, just like a little girl looking up at her daddy! Whenever we would leave the house, the sofa
became yours and we would see you slowly getting down as we turned the key and
opened the door upon our return.
You allowed so many little ones who had never been around a
dog to feel comfortable around you and many fell in love with you. Thank you for being so gentle with them.
When the snow fell you would run and jump and dive into the
fluffy stuff, coming up with it on your nose.
I loved watching you play outside.
You had this fun gallup, like a colt running for the first time in the
spring, then pouncing on your ball, like a kitten with a ball of yarn.
You certainly caught Eric off guard, opening up his heart to
love you like he never thought possible for a dog. Your kisses, just for him and that last one…
just for him. He was a man who grew up
with felines, but you dear Blu, YOU melted his heart.
I miss you so much Blu.
You came to us through another loving family, one that was so gracious
to share your life after 5 years, with us.
You trusted us to take care of you, but really, you took care of
us. Your love was so unconditional and
your spirit still swallows us up as we feel the tears flowing down our cheeks
whenever we think of you.
There were a few difficult times over the years, watching you fall to the
ground in mid run when chasing your ball, just to find out that you had a leaky
heart valve. Or having your leg wrapped up because you tore a ligament. And
what was up with the bad habit of going to the bathroom in the basement if the
door was left open? You were normally so good about letting us know that you
needed to go out…still a mystery. We got
through all the tough times...except this one.
As I walk through the woods now, remembering the first time
we were on this path, then 5 year old Zach holding you on leash, you both so
full of life. I took this photo of you
two in the woods, with winter surrounding us, happiness exuding from your
bodies; new buddies with hundreds of adventures to come. You will always be in our hearts dear Blu. And now that you are joined by our dear beloved cat Tabitha, we picture you both playing at the rainbow bridge, with plenty of treats, cuz balls and sofas with sunshine to lay on!
XOXOXOXOXO, Janice, Eric, Zach & Maizie
