We said goodbye to our Roary on May 2, one week past her 16th birthday. It was time to let her go.
We adopted her in our early 20s. We had been saying we wanted a dog for the longest time, but never took the first step. One August Sunday, we said, “it’s time.” It was her first day on the adoption floor in Pittsburgh, and it was love at first sight – the only small dog in a sea of bigs. She was four months old and seven pounds, fresh from the island of St. Croix where she had come from. We held her in the visitation room for two hours as she clung to my shoulder, and we clung to each other from then on.
Three states, eight houses, Finn, two kids, and countless adventures. She was part of me.
Fiercely loyal, fiercely protective, but also fiercely afraid of just about everything. She hardly stood a chance against a leaf blown into the air. A grocery bag crossing her path? Forget it, she was a wreck.
We miss her every single day.
I have the privilege of raising funds for Canine Companions, to support matching service dogs with clients with disabilities, free of charge. I think about the overwhelming bond I have with my Roar, and then I think about the indescribable bond of our clients and their service dogs. If you’d like to honor Roary or your own soul dog, please join me in making a contribution to my Canine Companions DogFest page, so that others in need may feel that life-changing love.