Sweet Anna

Anna pup and I met four days before my twentieth birthday when I was at school in Boulder.  My roommates and I had taken Jordan's dog Juneau and a couple borrowed dogs for a walk when we encountered Sam, a lost dog. 

With no correct tags to make contact, we took Sam to the animal shelter and that's where I saw Anna, playing with a small boy outside.  I asked him if it was his new dog and told him how cute she was and he said, "I don't think so." His mom then asked if I wanted her and I discovered she actually belonged to another nearby couple who had found her while camping in southern Colorado.  She had been left behind by a pack of wild dogs and when the local shelter found out the couple lived in Boulder, they encouraged them to take her with to Boulder's "no kill" shelter.  The mom and boy were considering taking her if she couldn't find a home but I picked her up, looked at my roommates for approving nods which were already taking place and the rest was history.  
The couple asked about what I might name her and I asked their names...."Steve," the man replied.  "hummmn," I said, "what's your wife's name?" "Anna," he replied.  As Anna was also my middle name and an important family name, "Anna," it was!

(I had her so long I had to scan FILM pics of her into this post :)

We took her home to Juneau, (a large malamute) and they were fast friends just as she and I were.  It is ABSOLUTELY OVERWHELMING to think about ALL we did together over nearly 14 years.  We had different roommates both pups and human, we moved to Montana and back and to Charlotte, NC and back and met Ryan and then Luke.  She went nearly everywhere with me while we lived in Boulder and often escaped to visit the frat house down the street. :)

She never liked dog beds or anything too soft until we moved to Charlotte and I got my first queen sized bed compete with a crisp and bright white pottery barn monogrammed duvet cover to proudly announce my entry into "real adulthood." It was then, and then only, that she LOVED to sleep on my bed. :)

Today as I write this, bawling, I'd give almost anything for another night on that bed in Charlotte because last week we said good-bye to my sweet girl.  Her health has been deteriorating and although I thought her lessening feeling and ability to walk in her hips was due to arthritis, I discovered it was actually a type of doggie MS that would next cause urinary tract infections and loss of feeling there and then start to affect her diaphragm and breathing. After two rough nights when she would only settle with me right beside her on the living room floor, I made the tough call to end her pain.  The angel vet as she is called by all who have met her, Christine, came to our house to help Anna pass.  After nearly 24 hours of non-stop pets and love, Anna was in our arms in her favorite spot as she went to sleep peacefully.

I am so glad she is no longer in pain but I miss her more than I could ever imagine and making these choices has been a shocking reminder of that "real adulthood" I was once so anxious to enter.  

It took Ben a couple days to realize she was gone and he still asks about her every day and says, "Anna come home," followed by, "Anna all gone."  I hope we can keep her memory alive for him and am so thankful for all the pictures we have of them together.  

Luke certainly feels a new weight to be on alert and protect us but has had fun doing doggie things we didn't do often because Anna was unfriendly and increasingly slow.   We still have to drag him out into the yard to play with us, but lots of love and walks are helping him transition.  As a skiddish and scared little guy, Anna was the best strong big sister Luke could have hoped for, but I know he'll bounce back and might just find a whole new side of himself. :)

As for me, a little over a week later, I can write this through tears and smile about all the amazing memories.  I still feel like I'm missing an appendage and wake up to hear her snoring and then remember she's gone.  I am finally sleeping better though and am able to look at her pics and smile.  As I told her while we were saying goodbye, it will be impossible for me to share such grand and amazing adventures with another pup because of the stage of my life that I had her.  She will always be my grand adventure Anna and I will be forever grateful for her loyalty and companionship in that important time of discovery.  I love you my sweet, beautiful friend and hope you've found pain-free peace.