Tonight's picture was taken in January of 2006. Mattie was four and half years old. That day we did a special project in Mattie's preschool class. I baked two gingerbread houses from scratch, made royal icing, and brought in all sorts of candies for the children to decorate the houses. This was a priceless activity. The kids were thrilled and one child couldn't get over that the royal icing, which looked like glue, was edible! Mattie was able to bring home the final products. I am so glad I volunteered to do this activity and got to see Mattie interacting with his classmates and to have created these memories.
Quote of the day: Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in. ~ Mark Twain
When we first got Sunny, at age 5, he was FULL of energy. Because he was a herding dog, he needed tasks and responsibilities. So I learned early on that Sunny needed several walks a day, one of which was several miles long. Sunny was all about scanning, observing, sniffing, and tracking down and chasing rats and squirrels in the city, and fox and deer in the suburbs!
After getting my parents settled this morning, I started piling up Sunny's medications and bagging them. I will be taking them back to the Hope Center, along with four bags of donated doggie items. Since Sunny was given five different chemos and other toxic medications, I just did not know how to safely dispose of them. Fortunately the vet has agreed to accept all of these items for us.
Sunny was diagnosed with cancer in March of 2022. In this two year time frame he was on the following Chemos:
- Palladia (10mg)
- Lapatinib (350mg)
- Lomustine (3mg)
- Toceranib (60mg)
- Melphalan (1.4mg)
What I do know is Indie seems to want to fill the void that Sunny has left. Of course she can't in my book, but she is much more demanding, clingy, and now when we come home, she is right by the door meowing her head off at us. This is something she never did when Sunny was alive. As she knew this was Sunny's role and that I always addressed Sunny's issues and needs first.
When Mattie died in 2009, I observed the impact of his death on both our cat, Patches, and our neighbor's dog, JJ. JJ would literally come to our townhouse door every afternoon and sit on the rug. He also took a sandal of Mattie's and slept with it in his crate. JJ's owner told me that he did not eat for days and looked depressed. Likewise, Patches, our cat, spent months in Mattie's room after he died and would sleep right on top of his pillow. Something she NEVER did when Mattie was alive. Patches and JJ prepared me for what I may see now in Indie. Our furry friends are indeed perceptive, sensitive, and they have an innate sense of loss and its impact.
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