Hi baby. I miss you so much.
You were my first dog and I loved you more than words could ever say. Although you didn't always enjoy my company (as a kid, I was sometimes a little too affectionate), I know deep down you loved me, too.
When you left, my heart hurt for a very long time. It was weird coming home from school and not seeing you at the door. I used to resent hearing you bark every time the neighbor's Shih-Tzu walked past our house, but I started to miss that. And I always hated having to share my food when you were drooling on my leg, but I found myself wishing you were there to split my hamburger with. The little things we did together, like playing tug-o-war or taking a walk around the block, quickly became things I couldn't do anymore.
We all miss you so much. Mom misses you jumping up and cuddling with her. Dad really misses playing catch in the yard with you. Your sister misses teasing you endlessly. And me, well I just miss having you around. You always made life a little more interesting. I wish you could have been here to see all the fun things we've done the past few years. It's not the same without you here.
I want to thank you for being the best dog you could be. We were not always the nicest people; bugging you when you wanted to sleep or not sharing our ice cream with you. But at the end of the day, you were family. Seeing you go through the pain you went through was so hard so we had to let you go. We hope you understand. You gave us 14 years of laughs and love and we could never repay you for that.
I hope you don't feel replaced by the new dog. She's a little crazy, you definitely wouldn't like her. But she would have absolutely loved you. It took a while to convince mom to let us get another dog -- she said she didn't want anyone other than you. But we finally got her to crack (you know she's easy to convince) and we brought the puppy home. And she makes me so happy, like how you did when you were here. She's no replacement, but she brought life back to our dog-less home.
And although no words could ever describe how much I wish you were still here, you gave us a lifetime of happiness in your numbered days. We are forever grateful for you and miss you every single day.
Love,
One of your favorite humans
(P.S. I hope you're having fun up there with grandma, your #1 human. If we can't have her, we're glad you can.)
