German Shepherd Carries Cat Toy Around The House For The New Kitten To Play With

[TomSlick]

7. All too true. Over the years, I have grieved for many dogs.

There was Pebbles who was adopted from a shelter when I was stationed in Kentucky. I went in looking for a small short-hair and left with a large long-haired mutt when the shelter worker told me, through her tears, that it was her "last day" in the shelter. When our son was born, Pebbles took on the role of Nana.

There was Fritz, the escape artist, who the rest of the family couldn't handle but settled in happily in our home. Then Heidi, that my wife and then teen aged son adopted as a puppy from the Walmart parking lot and who spent her last years on evening walks in a doggie wheelchair. Then came Beau, the Weimaraner who was too big and lively for a young man in our church. I dug each of their graves while crying. Each time, I assured myself that my tears were the cost of such unmerited love while the dogs lived.

Now we have Ciorra, a beagle, from a local rescue organization and Finian, a small wire-haired terrier of some sort, who followed my wife home from campus.

When I see a picture of Pebbles and our then infant son, or of Beau (who had no idea of his size) sitting in my lap, I can only smile, just as I smile at the more recent picture of Finian with our grandson.

The best remedy for tears over a lost dog is to have them licked away by another dog. Be brave. Some furry bundle of love needs you.