Today’s note of thanks is for our pets. Growing-up we had to beg our parents for pets and of course started with fish, then turtles, hamsters, bunnies, found out mom was allergic to cats–yikes–then finally got our first dog. That dog–a medium-sized poodle–was pretty crazy, but looking back I think it was possibly because we never neutered him…? Over the years, eventually starting my own family, I realized how nice it was to have a dog around, but sometimes circumstances were not always optimal.
Now we have had our silly, sweet Golden Retriever Theo for four years and he is definitely part of the family. I didn’t realize how much I cared about him until today. The truth is, I really wanted a smaller dog, a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel, to be specific, since that was my last dog and I loved everything about her. Nonetheless, we decided on a bigger dog instead and he’s been a part of the family since. He loves to swim, go on walks, and jump up on everybody he meets! Clearly, he did not get enough training.
Anyway, today we got the bad news that Theo’s “girlfriend”, a 9 year-old beautiful, sweet, Golden Retriever, named Marley who lives a few houses down from us, all of a sudden got sick and was going to have to get euthanized. I have had to hold back my tears about this news and had no idea it would make me so upset. She’s not even our dog! I think Theo realized his buddy was not doing well and it makes me sad to know what the family had to go through. I am very thankful I got to know beautiful Marley and I am so appreciative of our Theo.
Pets are pretty amazing when you think about it. They not only give us companionship, they also change who we are and have the potential to make us better people. Here’s a big thanks to all of our pets!
