Lulu

     

 As much as I've meant to get back to blogging; both because I enjoy it and also because I get bullied about my lack of writing regularly, I definitely didn't want my comeback to be because of the loss of Lulu.  I definitely didn't think that I was the kind of person to write love letters to my pet, but this has been especially difficult and since many folks hadn't gotten the chance to meet her I felt the need to share.

Lulu snuggles were the best!

Even when she only wanted to snuggle with my feet...weirdo!

I was gifted with Lulu for 13 years and was honestly surprised when my mom called me last Monday to tell me that she had to make the decision to put her to sleep. I was just there this summer and Lulu was energetic and loving...definitely not to the point of an unhappy life.  But, had been living with an enlarged heart which caused her liver and other organs not only to swell, but also to slowly shut down. Mom knew that was the best choice for Lulu and called me to talk with me about it.  Honestly, I don't know what was worse, accepting the fact that Lulu was going to pass or watching my mom cry talking to me about it and realizing that was probably more difficult for her at this point.

Staring out the window was one of her favorite activities.

Lulu was a lover of ALL snacks; apples, carrots, bonito, dog treats, cheese, but especially popcorn. She was an avid guard dog, not only protecting the house from mailmen and local children on the sidewalk, but even managing to notice birds and squirrels, and even dogs who were three blocks away.  She was a vicious destructor of fluffy toys, who especially enjoyed emptying all the fluff in order to target the plastic squeaker.  She had more toys than most children, but she definitely did NOT share.

Love!

First, you need to know that Lulu was an unplanned grand-dog on my part.  I was going through a separation from my then husband and was living alone in a fairly large house.  My mom surprised me one weekend as I walked in her house and found a puppy had joined her menagerie of animals.  At first I thought she had bought herself a new dog, but it turns out that she knew me better than I knew myself.  From that weekend forward Lulu was my best friend.

She has been there for me through the divorce, a couple other relationships, some major surgeries, the loss of a job, five houses on two continents, and a myriad of other life events.  Some folks doubt the benefits of having a pet, and I might have too, before actually having one.  For those of you who met her, you know that she had some serious personality; loving and silly and playful and always hungry, but also could be quite the bitch. In fact, I often said that she was more like my younger brother while mom's other dog Roxie was more like me.  Lulu HAD to be the center of attention, but this revolved more around hogging ALL the toys, bones, and snacks; claiming it all for her own. If she saw that another dog got something, she would immediately go and claim the item for her own; sneaking off to hide her bounty.

Funny thing is that she didn't particularly like other dogs. She preferred to sit with humans and keep them company.  She couldn't be bothered to play with her own kind, but would rather sit on a chair paying attention to conversation (or really waiting for food scraps). She acted like a ferocious guard dog, but actually was scared of nearly everything; including children, dogs, cats, even a crow.  She'd bark and growl until the opposition grew close and then she'd hide behind me and pretend to be confused at the confrontation.

I am thankful everyday that my mom made the decision to find Lulu and gift her to me. And speaking of that...Mom, thank you for not only knowing that I needed a companion during that rough time 13 years ago, but also for treating Lulu like your own. I know that it was a pain to keep her while I initially moved to Japan and even more of a pain to bring her over to me when you came to visit.  Again, you saved the day when I moved to Okinawa and knew that it wasn't ideal for Lulu (she HATED heat and water so a tropical island would have been torture).  I know she loved that you worked from home and could spend so much time with her. I think the only part of that deal she disliked was that she no longer had sliding glass doors to peer out of all day. Instead of making me feel constantly guilty, you loved her like your own...even giving her WAY more snacks than I approved of.  Every visit home I looked forward to spending cuddle time with her and even though I gave you a hard time about her, I knew that she was well cared for.  As awful as it was to get the phone call from you Monday, I'm so glad that you were on that end to hold her. Thank you for making that decision, I know it was hard.  I love you and appreciate all that you did for Lulu. She was an amazing dog and lead a pretty awesome life.    💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕

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