Our first family dog came into our lives when the children were young. She was a black Labrador retriever named Kelly. She was precious to us all. Chris was hilarious about having a dog. He “gave in”. He didn’t think we needed a dog. “Dogs are a lot of work.” All of the complaining and yet, if he was doing yard work, Kelly was laying unleashed in the front yard with him. She road in the truck with him. She went on walks in the woods with him. Kelly loved the children but Chris was her master, the pack leader. Chris and the children loved to play hide and seek with her in the woods. She would run ahead and turn around to check on everyone but no one was there! They were all hiding behind trees. She would backtrack and sniff out everyone! We lost Kelly when she was 5 years old. We had recently moved and she got out of the fence and was hit by a car. A friend saw her lying on the side of the road and called me. She had already passed away. The loss was so hard on the children but also on Chris. He was quick to say we needed another dog. About six months after we lost Kelly, Chris came home to say that he had a friend with chocolate lab puppies.
Needless to say, we fell in love immediately with a beautiful girl who was the runt of the litter. We named her Maggie and she was just as awesome as Kelly had been. She was Chris’s constant companion. She loved to jump in the pool after a ball! She did get into a bit of trouble when she and Hershey, a rescued Chocolate lab we were blessed to have with us for a little over a year, got into a bag of stuff animals from the garage. When I came home, my backyard was covered in synthetic snow, a winter wonderland of fun!
When Chris died, there was a lot of activity and people coming and going at the house and Maggie got lots of loving. When the new normal began, I noticed her moping around. She had recently had some health issues so I wasn’t overly concerned. One day I called her to come inside and she came to the door with one of Chris’s yard gloves in her mouth. My heart dropped to my stomach. I told her to drop it. She refused. Crying, I let her bring it inside. She laid down and rested her head on the glove.
I sat down beside her and we mourned our loss together. Two nights later she couldn’t/wouldn’t get up. With the help of a friend, we took her to the emergency vet, who said they could keep her comfortable but she most likely wouldn’t walk again. So, the girls and I made the decision to take away her suffering. I know that Chris was waiting for her on the other side, calling her to come to him. And she did. We were blessed to have her in our lives for twelve years.
Our fur babies are such a special part of our lives, always loyal and present.
If you have had the honor of owning a dog, I hope you have your own treasured memories.
Love, Mercy, and Grace 