pets

(top photo is Skylar - bottom photo is Sam)

for some, the love from a pet is their first experience with unconditional love...

I have a dear friend who lost a pet today... It is hard experience...

I am looking at my two beasts a little differently this evening... as they lay on their backs, legs straight out to their sides, mouths wide open with their tongues dangling out to the side...

When I am happy, my dogs make me laugh. They nudge me, rub up on me, wag their enormous tails, and greet me excitedly...

When I am sad, my dogs know it. They lay at my feet, look up at me with questions in their eyes, hang their heads with sad eyes, and are still...

When I am mad, my dogs are distressed. They pace around the room, Skylar wants my attention as if to try to change the subject, Sam brings me his snuggle pup, and they stay at a healthy distance...

My Sam is a nut case. He likes everyone in my family, but I am his favorite... which is funny because he annoys the heck out of me. I swear to you that he has ADHD and needs Ritalin... in LARGE quantities. He loves to be brushed and rubbed. He would play fetch with you until your arm falls off. He loves to swim. He does not like for males to be anywhere near me... if we have company, and I am standing talking with any man other than my husband, Sam will come and stand between me and the gentleman... as if to say, "Back off buddy, she is taken!"

My Skylar is perfect. She is calm and quiet. She is the perfect snuggle buddy on a cold day. She makes a great pillow if you lay on the floor with her. She sits on my feet and stays close to me. She forces everyone who comes into contact with her to fall in love. No one leaves her without first telling me what a perfect pooch she is... they are right. I will forever adore my SkylarBean. She is the most submissive dog to ever breathe air. She is my dog-soulmate. She trys to look "aloof" but she is aware of everything around her all of the time... She will alert me when Scott's car pulls into the driveway. She loves people and has never met anyone that she does not simply adore.

Our pets are a part of our family. We love them. We scream at them. They make us laugh and frustrate us.

When a pet leaves a family, there is a void...

Friends - hug your pet a little tighter tonight...

 make sure they know just how important they are to you!