A tribute to a Very Good Boy: Al

I hope you’ll indulge me a little bit today and let me make a departure from fragrance and makeup and let me tell you about my dog Al. I took him to the vet yesterday because he hasn’t been feeling well and the outlook is not good. Our sweet guy does not have much longer with us and we are just keeping him comfortable until we feel it’s time to say goodbye.

I was on an early morning walk with our first dog Maggie, when Al found us. I thought he was a raccoon or a fox running up to us, but I quickly realized he was a dog, a mini schnauzer. I tried to tell him to go back home and walk away, but he followed us all the way home. Not sure what to do, I let him in our backyard. We did our due diligence and put up signs advertising a missing dog and he ended up at the Humane Society where someone could also claim him. Sadly, no one claimed Al, but we were happy to make him part of our family.

What a joy Al has been to have in our lives. Nothing made Al happier than playing endless rounds of fetch in our backyard. Only in the last year has he stopped playing fetch as the arthritis in his legs finally caught up with him. We can still say “Where’s the ball Al,” though and he’ll cock his head sideways and look at us hopefully. His mind wants to play fetch but his body betrays him.

If you would have told me that a mini schnauzer would make a great family dog, I would have not believed you. But, as it turns out, we could not have asked for a better dog for our kids to play with. My daughter has become very attached to Al, following him around all day and insisting that he play with her. She still throws the ball for him and he gets lots of hugs and kisses all day. Al is patient, calm and never gets mad at the kids. When he’s done being messed with, he simply just gets up and walks away. Al and our daughter’s friendship is what makes this all even more heart wrenching. I feel sorry our son will not remember Al or get to know him the way our daughter has.

This is the fourth pet we’ve had to say goodbye to, and it never gets easier. If anything, it gets harder with each pet, because we know what is coming. It feels especially cruel this time, as we just had to say goodbye to our cat in February. I naively assumed Al would be with us for a lot longer, as he was younger than the rest of our pets we previously had. Our time together feels unfairly cut short. The house will feel extra quiet with no jingling of Al’s tags or clicking of his toe nails on the hardwood floor. It feels very strange to have had four pets and now soon we will have none.

Thank you for giving me the time to talk about Al. What a special part of our lives he has been and we are going to miss him dearly. I am not sure how much longer he has left, but he is getting the royal treatment in the mean time. He’s laying next to me on the couch, snuggled up a blanket- he is allowed on the couch normally! He has enriched our lives greatly and I don’t think I’ll ever meet a dog quite like him. I hope he can reunite with the rest of the gang and they can all have a grand old time together. Thank you for picking us to be your family Al. We love you so much. Rest easy.