Tribute

This is one of those blog posts that is probably more for me and Kory then for everyone else out there. I know I have mentioned before that I print these out as a journal/keepsake for our family and that will be a huge reason for this post. It is also a lot more personal than most my posts so sorry! I looked the definition of tribute up to make sure that was a good title for this blog and it definitely is! Tribute: a gift, testimonial, compliment, or the like, given as due or inacknowledgment of gratitude or esteem. 

We had to say goodbye to our very best friend this week and it has quite possibly been some of the hardest days of my life. We had to put Buster Trudee down on Wednesday. She hadn't been herself for a few weeks now and the past few days had gotten extremely bad. She had completely stopped eating and was throwing up constantly. I took her to the vet thinking I could get her on some anti-depressants since this had all started when we brought Boston home. Unfortunately we found out her kidneys had failed and she didn't have much longer to live.  I honestly think the only other time I have cried as long and as hard as I did at hearing this news was after our first and second miscarriage. That is how close and dear to our family Buster was. 

We made the very hard decision of knowing we couldn't make her suffer more than she already had. The poor dog was obviously miserable. We tried to make her last day the best we possible could and let her do all the things she loved. Her stamina was almost completely gone and the day really just involved letting her lay outside and shower as much love on her as we could. She spent her last night in her favorite place, cuddled up between me and Kory in our bed. I chose to be with her during the sedation part of the process and she fell asleep being held and talked to by me. That was probably my smartest move as it offered me a good deal of closure. We then brought her home and had a mini funeral for her. 

Buster was quite literally like a child to us. For years we had tried to have a baby and could not. Buster literally pulled us through some very hard times and took the place of something we could not yet have. She was the sweetest, most loving dog I have ever met, with a loyalty to us that could not be matched. People who have never had a pet like Buster would probably say we are crazy but the attachment between Buster and us was very real, tangible, and loving. I firmly believe that Heavenly Father helped Buster to live until we adopted Boston. According to the vet she had been sick for months based on how far gone her kidneys were. She never let on and persevered until we had our baby. 

Some of my favorite quirks about Buster that I never want to forget:
*Buster was fanatical about string cheese. Anytime we opened the drawer that held the string cheese she was stuck to us like glue. She absolutely loved the stuff!
*Every morning when I did my workout Buster would show up at the end when I got down to do my sit-ups and she would quickly crawl on top of me and lay across my stomach. There was no way I could do the sit-ups with her laying there.
* Whenever Buster really wanted something she would do a fake sneeze over and over. Effectively spraying us with snot until she was appeased.
*Every morning between 5:30-6:30 Buster would approach my side of the bed and softly scratch until I lifted her into it. She knew this was the only time she was allowed in the bed. 
*Buster really liked to be in the center of attention. Every time Kory and I would get close together Buster would come wrestle her way between us. 
*Buster would also clean up her mess in the house. If we had any of her toys or bones out in the living room, she would pick them up one by one and take them back to "her room."
*Buster loved walks, treats, her ears twisted, car rides, she hated baths, haircuts, her front paws touched, Kory giving attention to the neighbors dogs.


Well, if you are still with me I apologize for the length and somber tone of this blog. I have been feeling like I needed to write this all down for a couple days now in order to cope and have some closure. I actually feel quite cleansed. :-) We absolutely adored Buster and she was truly a blessing in our lives.