by Patricia Quirk
About 14 years ago, we got a dog. My mom knew someone who had a dog that they did not want anymore. The dog was between 2-3 years old. She was severely abused when she was young. The people gave her away. Her new owners could not stand her barking, so we got her. She was so beautiful. She was a white German Spitz with the most soulful,loving borwn eyes I had ever seen. I loved her the instant I saw her. As time went on, she grew comfortable in our home. She was our protector. Anytime she thought we were in danger (you know how mailmen can be..lol) she would bark and make sure people knew that we were HER people and she would not let anything happen to us. She was such an incredibly smart dog. She knew how to dance, speak,shake,roll over, beg, stay put and how to play hide and seek. Sometimes we would go into different rooms and call her. she would run from room to room as fast as she could and all you could see was a white blur. She had an "Elvis lip"...after she barked, her lip would curl like Elvis'. She had a spot on her nose that was peach-colored, but when she was tired or asleep it turned bright pink. I used to look at that and think how cute it was. She looooved to be cuddled. She would literally never leave my side if I did not make her. She loved to give kisses all the time. She would let me hug her anytime I wanted to. She knew all of my secrets. All of a sudden when she was about 11-12, her health plummetted. She started scratching at her eyes all the time, she had some growths in her stomach, and she was deaf. She was literally rail-thin. You could count her bones through her skin. She fell down the stairs all the time, so she slept away from them. She was scared to go outside. Once, she got off of her leash and wandered away. we were so scared because she was blind and deaf. We called our friends and they drove us around the neighborhood until we found her. She was sooo scared. She was shaking so hard I could barely hold her. My older sister and I thought that this was no life for the dog we adored. We felt it was time to put her to sleep.We all had one final picture taken with her,then we went to the vet, with her wrapped up in a blanket. It was so cold that day. We went in and registered. The nurse led us to a room. It seemed like we waited an eternity for the doctor to come in. He came in and he told us she had to lay down. She fought because she was scared. (She could not see or hear what was happening.) All of a sudden she licked my hand and laid down. He gave her "the shot". I held her hand and watched her breathing get shallower and farther between. The vet came in and he listened to her chest with a stethoscope. I'll never forget his next words..."Her heart has stopped. Take all the time you need." I was horrified. Such a wonderful companion gone. I could not leave for about ten minutes. I regained my composure and left. We had her cremated. I made a box for her. i also kept her collar. I will miss her until we meet again. Ther is no doubt in my mind she is keeping my seat in Heaven warm.