Beau
I want to thank everyone at AEC for all of your kind words and thoughts.
Beau was my sister-in-law Laura’s dog. She rescued him from a shelter just one day before he would be lost forever. We think he was 4 years old when she took him home with her. Then she spoiled him for 6 years. Three years ago Laura passed away, from cancer, at age 47. We took in Beau, and also her parakeet Desi. Between myself, my wife and our two boys, Beau always had someone to flop down next to for attention.
I worked from my home office, so for me Beau was a constant companion all day, every day, for three years. We would go for a walk at lunch time, play with a squeak toy when I got up for a break, or I would just find him on the couch and sit a while and scratch his tummy. He would be the alarm when the doorbell rang or someone knocked. Often he would be laying down near my feet on the black carpet my chair rolled on. I would need to be careful since he blended in so much with his black coat!
It was a very, very full three years and I’m grateful for all that time. I just wish it would have been for longer. But he got sick. The heart medicine helped a lot at first, but I knew it wouldn’t last. As he got worse even the shortest, slowest walk would sometimes be too much and I would have to carry him home.
Beau is with Laura now and I miss him dearly. For us, our home is emptier and quieter, but our other small dog, Bailey, is still here and helps a lot to fill in. And I have enough happy memories to last a lifetime.