Puppy Love

Bruno in his favorite sleep position, hogging the bed.

Once upon a time, there was a magnificent dog by the name Bruno. This gentle giant of a Dog came to live with us when he was just about 4 months old. We wanted a companion for our Beloved Lucy Girl. Bruno was a Humane's Society Dog.

Even though he was a mixed breed, one look at his feet told us he would be a BIG dog.  Bruno grew to a healthy 125 and had a slender build. He ate a lot. He had allergies, and took allergy medicine for them. His back bothered him and he amazed us as he was smart enough to twist and align it when he slept.

This loyal Pup was a dream Dog. He stayed by Lucy's side, guided her, assist her, and slept next to her. He protected my daughters, and never once bit anyone.
When Lucy died, Bruno mourned. He continued to be a great Dog to us, but he missed her terrible. We decided to get him a little sister. Riley, was purchased at The local Pound at 5 weeks old.

Bruno wasn't too sure about this crazy ball of energy. He gentle played with her, let her razor sharp teeth hang off his body, and learn to adore her. Riley got  very sick after our first week with her (parvo) and landed in the Veterinary Hospital for several weeks. But, once she arrived home, Bruno again, stepped into protective nurse mode and tended her every need, much as he did for Lucy.

Everyone that meet Bruno, adored him. For Halloween, he donned a kitty headband and sat on the porch with me passing out candy to the children. He played, loved our family and was such a good boy.

One day, I noticed a swelling on Bruno's throat and thought he had gotten stung by a wasp. (he was always killing them when they would fly around the swimming pool. Surely to keep them away from the kids in the pool.). Off to the vet we went. But it wasn't a wasp sting... He had lymph node cancer.  There wasn't anything we could do.  Our vet found several other lumps, and would not be able to cure this. We chose to give Bruno medication to keep him comfortable for as long as possible and make the best of what time we had left. A few months later, we loss our sweet gentle giant. Too soon.  He was only five years old.

Had we known this Dog would not live long, we would have still chosen him. The love Bruno shared with us in five years are worth a hundred years. I would not have traded them.  He gave to each of us. He is still a part of us, and still in framed photos in our home.

Recently, a blog friend, Herrad, from Access Denied-living with ms  received devastating news of her Beloved Spike.

Spike has Bone Cancer. 

Herrad & her Richie, understand a thing or two about Puppy Love and about dealing with death.

Sometimes, life is so unfair. Sometimes it is very unexplainable. It certainly is unpredictable and challenging.

I think my friend would agree with me. It is worth it. You take what you get and make the best of it. You need to enjoy every second and every opportunity. You never know when it is gone. You may never know how fortunate you are, but if you live each day the best you can, if you can pay it forward (much like our Pups). Then, I think you have something.