We had to say goodbye to our little Riley yesterday. After a month of him fighting whatever was destroying his body, we decided that he wasn't going to get better and it wasn't fair as pet owners to make him keep fighting. So, we made our final trip to the vet yesterday. And I thought I was going to throw up right there in the exam room. I just couldn't take it. So, my amazing husband stayed with him while I went to the car to bawl my eyes out. Nine years is a long time to have such a loyal partner in crime and it hurts like heck to lose him. But, in an attempt to remind myself to focus instead on what a cool little guy he was, here's a list of my favorite things about my Ry:
1. He always met me at the door and was insanely excited to see me.
2. He slept on my pillow like ear muffs for me and drowned out my husband's crazy snoring.
3. He could do the dog-dog. What?!??! You don't know what the dog-dog is? He would stand on his hind legs and pump his front ones in a dance I like to call the dog-dog. I have video and I'll post it if I can find it without having to look through a bunch of videos (not quite ready for too much of that yet)
4. He cocked his head to the left and right whenever I talked. He was so attentive!
5. His skills running on wood floors would put hockey players to shame! Okay, maybe not that good, but it provided hours of entertainment. He could run and take corners like nobody's business... until he would inevitably crash into the wall, shake it off and come sit down by me.
6. His love of food. I mean, seriously. Have you ever seen a dog that would get so excited about his food that he couldn't keep it contained? Literally. He actually pooped one time while eating he was so excited. Gross, yes. Hilarious, absolutely.
7. He always wanted to look pretty. If I told him it was bath time, not so much fun, but he'd go along with it. When it came time to blow dry his hair though, now that he loved! He would just sit still and let me brush and dry him as long as I wanted. So handsome!
8. He once won the Pet Halloween Costume contest at Post Oak Mall in College Station. The local news was there and wanted to cover it (ya know, big time small town news) and I was too embarrassed... so I got a little girl to hold him and talk to the reporter. Riley wasn't embarrassed, he strutted his stuff proud and was such a cute little cowboy!
9. He was so adaptable. My poor dog has moved all over the place and made each rental house a home. He was part of our little family and his presence alone really did give some semblance of "roots".
10. Riley was absolutely the best little dog I could have hoped for. He literally never wanted to leave my side. But somehow, even though he was a bit of a mama's boy, he won over the hearts of my friends and family as well. He will no doubt be missed by many but the impact Riley had on his mama's heart is something that I will carry with me forever. Love you little guy!
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