She's been gone a year. I still think about her all the time and I miss her. Love you baby girl.
Sweet, sweet story
This is so sweet but you might need to get the kleenex out.
Our 14 year old dog, Abbey, died last month. The day after she died, my 4 year old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey.. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could so she dictated these words:
Dear God, Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much. I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick. I hope you will play with her. She likes to play with balls and to swim. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her You will know that she is my dog. I really miss her. Love, Meredith
We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had. Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, 'To Meredith' in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers called, 'When a Pet Dies..' Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey &Meredith and this note: Dear Meredith, Abbey arrived safely in heaven. Having the picture was a big help. I recognized Abbey right away. Abbey isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets to keep your picture in, so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by.. Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you. I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much. By the way, I'm easy to find, I am wherever there is love.
Love, God
Rest in peace Sadie
Sadie, the little tabby kitty on my website lost her battle with cancer on Friday 6/12. Sadie's owner was our next door neighbor in California. Sam and Sloan used to stand with their noses poking through the railing of our upstairs deck looking in the yard next door for Sadie. Rest in peace baby girl. I can imagine you and Sloan in heaven meowing and barking at each other debating who was loved more. :)
6 months ago
It was six months ago this morning that I made a decision so many pet owners have to make. I let Sloan go. She had a tumor in her spleen called an hemangiosarcoma (HSA.) I had not even heard of this but it is fairly common in older, large dogs and Sloan was 12. I knew something was wrong even before her diagnosis so there was some comfort in at least knowing what was wrong. Unfortunately what was wrong had no viable treatment options.
The prognosis with this cancer is not good. The only treatment option is surgery to remove the spleen and the tumor. This tumor is a bleeder and easily spreads and we suspected that it had spread. I didn't have a hard time making the decision not to opt for surgery. I didn't want to put Sloan through that when her chances for a quality life after where not very good. (Less than 10% of dogs survive 1 year.)
6 months ago today was the worst day of my life. I still think about Sloan everyday. I'm not sure why but when I think of her, it is those last few days that I always think of first. I am ready for the day when I think of the healthy, happy Sloan first.
Our yellow lab Sam is starting to show his age too. It makes me sad to think of the day when Sam won't be here either. We've had Buddy for 5 months now and he is a perfect addition to our house. He and Sam get along well but we've started discussing whether or not we should get a 3rd dog. Sam did just fine when we lost Sloan but if something happens to Sam, I'm not sure that Buddy would do well.
If we decide to get another dog, we will rescue again and most likely from NC Lab Rescue which is where we found Buddy. I'm thinking we will get a female and I'd love to get a chocolate lab, I'd love to have all 3 colors :) but I don't think I'm ready for a female that is chocolate. We shall see....