My faithful, four legged companion, Bella, looked into my eyes this afternoon and let me know it was time. Her battle against lymphoma and other assorted tumors had taken its toll and she no longer had the strength to go on. So, we gave her the gift of peace this afternoon and she is now romping in Doggie Heaven with other great dogs we have known.
On January 12, 2011, I wrote a Blog about Bella, "The World's Neediest Dog" and am reprinting it here....it is a fitting tribute to my Best-4-legged Friend !
The World's Neediest Dog
There have always been pets around. Growing up, we always had a dog in the family. My early childhood pet was Boots, a Heinz 57 variety mutt that might have been the coolest dog ever. In those days, the dog was only allowed in the house when the weather was absolutely dreadful. Otherwise, she slept outside by the back door. Boots was a tough old bitch. Because she was kept in the fenced-in backyard, chasing cars was just too inviting when she escaped her confines! Hit by cars numerous times, Boots survived albeit with only one eye and several operations. Although Mom always insisted that Boots was "the Boys" dog, we all knew that she was my Mom's dog. Unfortunately, Boots met her demise when, mostly blind, she ran between the front and back tires of a moving car in our driveway. She was followed by Yogi and Candy ....more mutts that considered Mom their master. In between those dogs, there was Jett, a head strong mean German Shepherd that was given away after he bit my younger brother.
Once I was married, we adopted another mutt...Peanut. I say "we" but Peanut was really Connie's dog. Peanut died young and was followed by Sadie, the hero dog. Sadie is generally credited with saving our lives as she woke us up early one morning because our apartment building was on fire. Although we were rescued by firemen with ladders from our 3rd floor apartment, Sadie was nowhere to be found and presumed dead. Two days later, Sadie was found alive in an adjacent wooded area by neighborhood kids. She evidently escaped the fire through the front door and although slight charred, survived to accompany us to our new house in Atlanta, our 4 years in Boston and a few years in Boca Raton. Sadie was a Damn Good Dog whose Master was, again, Connie!
After Sadie's demise, Lisa prodded us into a cocker spaniel pup...Tootsie.
After promises from Lisa that she would take care of the new puppy, Tootsie
settled into also being Connie's dog! Tootsie lived to a ripe old age and we
decided that she would be the last dog that we would own. So, dogless, we
babysat Lisa's dog, Kota, for a year while Lisa was in Africa. Kota and I bonded
and I was convinced that he had become MY dog and would want to stay with me
once Lisa returned. How wrong I was! Lisa walked into our house after 11 months
away and Kota immediately returned to her side as if I didn't even
exist.
Eight and a half years ago (NOTE: Now over 11 years ago!), I was prodded by a friend to go look at a puppy at the animal Shelter in West Palm Beach (a kill shelter-the dogs are euthanized if homes cannot be found). A puppy would be a terrific Mother's Day present for Connie! After almost leaving without a dog, this little 7 week old Australian Shepherd/Black Lab fur ball rubbed against my leg, looked up at me with "take me home" eyes and crawled into my heart. Upon presentation to Connie as her Mother's Day gift, she announced that she didn't want a dog! Uh oh, I guessed that finally, I was the proud Master of a dog. Little did I know that Bella was going to actually be the Master of me.
Bella is the sweetest, smartest and most needy dog in the world. I am convinced that she understands everything I tell her and, in fact, understands hundreds of words. One of her problems is that she doesn't know that she is a dog. She sleeps in our bed and is positive that everybody that comes to the house is there to see her and to play with her. Nearly every morning we start the day together with a 2 to 3 mile walk and then she "rests" most of the afternoon. Bella would much rather interact with humans than with other dogs. In fact, she severely dislikes small dogs - especially those that incessantly yap! When we kept Brad and Claire's dog, Rudy, for
the
year they were in Israel, Bella loved having a playmate and was depressed when
Rudy left. However, she got over that and became convinced that I, rather than
other dogs, should be her play pal. She is always around - under my feet at my
desk, next to my recliner while we watch TV, curled around my feet in bed, on my
chest as my wake-up call, bringing me her ball to throw when I am trying to
relax and sitting by the table during meals. If I go upstairs, she goes
upstairs...if I go outside, she wants to go with me...and she always wants to go
in the car - until we actually go in the car, then she cries the whole
time!Those that meet Bella instantly recognize her needy manner...always wanting to be the center of attention and never giving up easily. Bella is MY dog and I love her. And for that, her middle name is "the last one."
Postscript: Bella passed away peacefully in my arms at the Vet's office today, July 3, 2013. We will miss her!
And The Journey continues..............................
