Only for a dog

Mike and I each grew up dog lovers. Our families almost always had dogs in the home and since we've been together nearly 12 years, we've gone a total of less than 4 months without a dog in our home.  Our parents still have dogs and our siblings do, too, so no matter where we visit, there's usually a furry friend to greet us or to pile up on the couch with.  No outfit is complete without dog hair.

Before I came into his life, Mike had a dog, Simba.  He really took to Ruby so his parents more or less inherited him.  He loved Ruby but I'm not sure if he loved anyone else because all I ever knew of Simba was a scared dog who really didn't care for anyone, especially if they were in his space.  I saw way more of his growling gums than I ever felt comfortable with but I was there when everyone said their goodbyes and when he crossed over into the Rainbow Bridge.  I most certainly wouldn't have hung out with a human that reacted to me the way Simba did but I felt sorry for the poor guy and tried to love him anyway.  Only for a dog. 

Mike and I had only been dating a couple of months when I told him my plan to fly to Oregon and drive back with a dog. My favorite dog in the whole world, Brock, needed me in a big way and I had to go get him.  Mike volunteered to give up his Thanksgiving break to travel with me.  Over 2,100 miles from Portland and two and a half full days of driving, Brock was back home.  Only for a dog.

 

We had 2+ amazing years with Brock before the ugly cancer got him.  We hadn't had kids yet and his passing was unexpected and heart shattering.  Not until we met Eileen did our hearts feel full again.  She was a three-legged, obese, hot mess who loved to eat paper.  She got bored one night while we were sleeping and decided to get into the fire starter logs, yep, the flammable ones.  So at 8 months pregnant, I shook Mike awake in the middle of the night and we spent part of our Valentine's Day in the emergency vet to save our baby from her toxic snack.  Only for a dog.

In 2011, we welcomed Kiki into our family.  She was our third Boxer, but very different from the other two.  She was super chill, had an awesome underbite, deaf as a door post and was typically content just being near someone, anyone that would pet her.  She tolerated Henry as a toddler and loved hopping into the car to go for a ride.  As Kiki got a little older, her health declined a bit and unfortunately she ended up having to have one of her eyes removed because the retina detached.  This bought her a couple more really great years of life but it's certainly not something I ever imagined having to deal with.  Only for a dog. 

Lucy came along in 2012 and it was our first time to have two dogs at a time.  Shortly after she joined our family, I began having a pretty major health issue and she was right by my side, literally, for the entire ordeal.  Every night she was my faithful companion, my lap buddy and even though she can't talk back, I know she's always been my best little friend.  One night though, she and Kiki thought it would be fun to go gangbusters on a foil pan that was sitting on the kitchen counter.  It previously had green beans with bacon in it, Mike rinsed it and tossed it up on the counter to take out to the trash the next morning.  Well at 3am, Lucy and Kiki made so much noise it startled me awake. I went in to find both of them with miserable looking faces and a half-eaten foil pan.  I panicked, loaded them up in the car and drove to the ER vet (this time leaving Mike to sleep) only to shuck out over $300 to be told that they were probably going to be fine.  I also learned that aluminum won't show up on an x-ray the same way most metals will so the whole thing was a waste of time.  The good news is that my girls were going to be okay.  Only for two dogs. 

September 6, 2015, Mike brought Lily home from the dirt track, just two nights after we said goodbye to Kiki who passed away.  We were new foster parents to a newborn who had been placed with us just 9 days prior and I was exhausted to the core, beat down, tired. Needless to say, I didn't welcome Lily that first night, even made Mike sleep on the couch with his new "flea bag" because I didn't want her dirty dog self in our bed.  It was Clean Sheet Sunday, after all. The next day, I warmed up to the idea of her staying, she and Lucy worked out their differences and are still the very best of friends.  Yep, I agreed to let her stay because Lucy loved her, Mike was proud of her and because I felt sorry for her.  Only for a dog. 

Dutch came along last summer because we thought that having three dogs would be easier than having three kids. Ha, how wrong we've been.  Dutch, aside from being a raging, overprotective lunatic when new people come over, has cost us at least 3 loaves of bread, Henry's lunch (TWICE!) a practically brand new tub of arthritis chewables (thank God they were for dogs and not people!), a brand new crock pot and nearly $900 in emergency surgery expenses.  Only for a dog.  


Last summer, we were dog sitters for our friends when they took a family vacation.  Their dog was amazing all week, seriously no trouble at all until a handful of hours before her people got home.  We got home from church and couldn't find her anywhere. Mike and I were in a serious panic trying to find her, tearing through the closets, looking under beds, driving around the neighborhood, posting on Nextdoor, everything we could think of to find our friends' dog, their baby.  Not until we got on FB to post on the neighborhood group did we finally find her.  An amazing couple saw her running down the street hours earlier and scooped her up, worked for a couple of hours to try to find her family.  I don't remember how hot it was that day, but I know we were all sweaty and nearly in tears (well I had been bawling all afternoon....) when she was returned to our house.  I called my friend to tell her what happened and that I knew I needed to be fired, but that I would resign gracefully instead from my dog sitting duties. Only for a dog. 

It's funny to me that people are usually "cat people" or "dog people." Our family falls into the latter category for a number of reasons from I have a moderate allergy to cats and because dogs can go more places than cats can.  Dogs typically have a little more personality and are friendlier than cats, at least in my experiences.  Not knocking cats by any means but we've had such amazing dogs in our lives that we just can't imagine anything being better.  Not much beats piling up on the couch with two little dogs on my lap and a big tub of Boxer love piled up next to me.  There's no one else I'd rather share my snacks with or roll the window down for. There's no one else aside from Mike that's allowed to sleep in my bed, let alone snore in it and stretch out all four legs and crowd me up to the edge.  There's no one else I'd rather get up with in the middle of the night to let outside or to tell to stop barking.  Dogs are special in their own little ways and I'm incredibly thankful for all the days I've had with my fur babies and for that special place reserved in my heart - only for a dog.