RIP Anni

Anni was our greeter, companion, tail wagger, vacuum cleaner, shadow, comedian, fierce protector, our best friend, and our little girl.

She battled cancer all the way to the end, but she was suffering and we had to finally let her go. She was the life of our house, always happy to see us whether we left for 1 min or 10 days. When we walked through the door she was wagging her butt, making it always a joy to walk through the front door. In the mornings we could hear her coming as she walked on the hard wood floors towards our room, so she could get her morning butt scratch.

Anni came to us through a great friend of mine who had to find a home for her as his dog at the time wasn’t excepting the new puppy into the house. Paula wanted a dog, me not so much, but while Paula was away on business and I decided to take Anni in and surprise Paula. The rest was history. Paula loved her and I did as well. I loved her so much that I took her just about everywhere I could. Many of you knew her and she made it pretty clear rather quickly whether she liked you. I never imagined loving a dog as much as I loved Anni. They say a dog is a mans best friend, and she truly was.

About 4 months ago Anni was having issues using one of her back legs, so we brought her into the vet. An X-ray and check up didn’t show anything, so the Vet put her on some anti inflammatories. She seemed to get better, than after about a month she stopped using the leg again. We decided to try another Vet for a second opinion. She advised us to a specialist for a MRI, which showed the cancer in her spine. It was devastating news, especially since he said it had spread through the spine and we really couldn’t do anything at this point except manage her pain & give her the best time ever she had left. 4-12months was our time frame and I did all I could to spoil her. Even though we knew the inevitable would happen, we weren’t prepared for her to go downhill so fast, nor for the day we had to let her go. Definitely the hardest thing I have ever had to do or go through in my life. Our house is empty and we are having a hard time adjusting. It’s so hard to come home and not have her be there waiting for me. To not have her greet me at bedside in the mornings, be begging at the table, sitting in the kitchen waiting for scrapes to drop, to come out of a store and not have her sitting in the front seat of my van waiting, to not hear her howell at ever siren or bark when someone comes to the front door. Hopefully the pain will go away soon and we can start smiling every time we think of her instead of wiping tears from our eyes.

Thanks to everyone for all the kind messages & support. I don’t know if it’s possible to give as much love to our dogs as they give to us, but do your best, because they deserve it.

May you all have a happy holiday season…

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