It just wasn't meant to be. Teddy, the Japanese Chin who was living with me after being found as a stray, had gone though one serious problem after another. He was blind, then underwent an operation to remove a lump on his tummy. It was cancer, but the vet felt he had some good quality time left. I wanted to bring the little boy home, use his time left to allow him to enjoy being being someone's very much loved pet.

I brought him home. He was so happy, his tail wagging, snuffling around to find Miss Kitty, he gave a quick lick to Jasper. He found his bed, turned around 100 times then had a nap. I was thrilled with all of this. He had never shown any of this before. When he woke up, he barked. Another first! I lay on my belly on the floor, Teddy climbed up onto my back, chewed my hair, washed Miss. Kitty who joined him, and when Jasper climbed up, Teddy booted him off.

When it was meal time, he actually followed me out to the kitchen, sat on his bum and barked. He ate his meal with noisy enjoyment, chasing that dish all over the kitchen. The entire day passed like this. A day of wonders for me, as Teddy was having fun. He played with Jasper, had a tug of war with him over an old sock. If I left the room, he followed, sometimes bumping into my legs. When a friend came to visit, she was really shocked over the difference in the little dog.

At bedtime, Teddy asked up onto my bed. Jasper has his little spot, Teddy curled up next to him. Miss. Kitty joined the dogs. They were all in a bundle, I watched them for the longest time before falling asleep. Jasper woke me, and I knew immediately Teddy had died. Still curled in a circle, he looked at peace. I held him close and felt my heart breaking into pieces. I had wanted the wee boy to enjoy the time left to him. I never dreamed he would leave so soon. He had one day where life was sweet, if dogs could giggle he would have done that non stop. He played like a puppy, relished every bite of food, enjoyed the company of another dog and his friend the cat. He followed me around, nudging me with his nose to be picked up.

I took him into the country where pets are laid to rest. He was placed under a willow tree. It's a beautiful spot. I'm sure where he is now, he will have his sight back. The pain he suffered at the hands of uncaring humans will be forgotten, but I won't forget him. I'll think of how his last day was, happy, full of doggy fun and love. When my group of rescue helpers, laid him to rest, Jasper watched. After we placed our flowers and teddy bears on his grave, Jasper turned into a whirlwind. He ran around, leaping in the air, barking, racing, it looked as if he was playing with another dog. He would play bow, tear off, turn around and face something we couldn't see.

A wind came up, blowing through the branches of the willow tree. Jasper came to me, panting asking up. He licked my tears while we left the tiny grave. I do believe, that Teddy was taking his last playtime on earth. He'll join all the other dogs waiting for their humans. I am so very glad he had one day where life was good. He has his wings now, he earned them well.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 12th, 2008 at 10:01 am and is filed under Cool Dog Memorial, Cool Dogs Wonderful Memories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.