November28th…

I thought about what I wanted to post as I am awake at this ungodly hour and looking at the date here on WordPress, it kind of hit me. Today is November 28th, not that it means much to many, but this was my dog Max’s birthday. Again, it probably means little to most, but if you know me, Max was my sweet boy, I loved him very dearly, and today would have been his 19th birthday. OK, so let’s be realistic, he most likely would not be alive today, if he didn’t pass before his time. I’d like to share my story about Max…

A few days prior to Max coming into our lives, we were dealing with the impending loss of my first dog, Happy. She was in the hospital for a few days, and after visiting her in the hospital, I went home and cried my eyes out after making the decision to put her to sleep. I knew it was best for her, I just couldn’t stand to see her that way. I decided that after work, we would go down to the hospital say our “goodbyes” and well, you know. That whole day, I had this sinking feeling, I thought it was because I just didn’t want to lose my baby, but she ended up passing on her own that day, before we could say goodbye. Who knows for certain what that feeling was, I just knew my best friend I had, the one who I met just months after being diagnosed, loved and accepted me for who I was, the friend I grew up with, was now gone. I know, now this is supposed to be a happy post about Max, you’re probably thinking to yourself. Be patient, I’m getting to that! The very next day the phone rings and the receptionist from the vet’s office says “Do you believe in miracles?” I thought to myself “Lady, unless my dog has somehow sprung back to life….” Well, she called to tell us that a woman dropped off a 5 month old puppy who was the exact same breed as the dog we just lost. I have to be honest, I wasn’t all that excited, and I surely didn’t think she was calling us to see if we wanted it, but that was exactly it. I had such mixed feelings about the whole thing, I felt it was too early, I felt that I was cheating on my first dog, you name it, the thought ran through my head. But the timing was right, we took him and he was already named Max, and he knew his name well, so we kept it. It didn’t take long for our hearts to love this little guy, although he was a puppy and I totally forgot how much trouble puppies can get into. He was super smart, to boot. The woman who surrendered him had just had a baby and couldn’t deal with the baby and this puppy’s energy. (poor excuse, if you ask me, but I am thankful for her not being capable of the situation, otherwise I would have never had the pleasure of knowing Max) He was AKC Registered, we had record of his mother, father and his date of birth and everything, which I thought was super cool! But Max was more than just a dog, he was part of the family. He saw me through losing many family members, including my dad, and through many happy times, as well. He was my rock, which is kind of ironic, because that’s what caused his demise, a rock. I won’t go into too many details, but apparently, he found a mighty tasty rock and ate it, ultimately it caused kidney damage, we tried a few things, but ultimately had to let him go, so we did what any responsible pet owner would’ve done. Just a few short weeks before his 15th birthday. I had an incredibly hard time dealing with his loss, maybe because I felt I failed him, or maybe it was because I never properly got to mourn my first dog and all the emotions that got bottled up and stored away deep with the love of this new puppy. Who knows? Thinking of him usually brings a smile to my face, in a bitter-sweet sort of way. All my dogs hold a very special place in my heart. Happy Birthday, Max, my sweet boy. ❤