This is a post I've been putting off for quite some time as it feels like another finality. January 27th would have marked the 8 year anniversary of Sully joining our family. Sully passed suddenly on December 19th. We woke to hear him struggling to move around at 4am and immediately called the emergency vet. She said we could bring him in at 7am that morning, but we never made it there. In the meantime, Isaac carried him downstairs so he could be on his bed. Charlie and Lucy woke up and Sully was very aware of their presence and passed quickly after Lucy joined his side. I feel, with out a doubt, he needed to know his whole family was accounted for before he could move on. He dutifully took on the role of protector when he joined this family. He disliked when someone needed to break off from a family walk or run. He didn't like leaving the house when some of the family was still there. He wouldn't go to bed for the night until each person was also in bed.
Sully taught Isaac and me about true responsibility, love and trust. This dog had no reason to trust anyone when we adopted him. He literally crawled across the floor when he met Isaac for the first time. He was malnourished and had wounds on his neck. His tail hung limply and if you threw him a toy it would just hit him in the face. Over the next year, he excelled in his obedience class, became socialized with many dog and human friends and went out into the world with his tail held high (like a "flagship" as Isaac and I would say).
It was a true honor to earn Sully's trust, and I think that's part of why this goodbye was especially hard. He was more than "just a dog". We miss our friend and family member and remember him fondly.
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| Sully accepting Lucy into his "pack". |
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| Several weeks after Sully died, Lucy had an especially hard drop off at school. Mrs. Haro scooped her up and told her they would make a card together. She asked Lucy what she wanted to say, and these are Lucy's words. It's amazing to see that she was still processing the loss of her dog and there were feelings she still needed to get out. |
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| Sully with his main companion-Lucy Dog. |
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| Sully easily accepted Charlie into his pack. I will miss seeing their relationship grow as they seemed to have a special bond. Charlie might even be crawling by now if he had his dog to chase after. |
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| An old photo collage we found. Ella was another good buddy of Sully's and he often stayed with her when we were gone for weekend trips. |
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| Always happy to come down to the dock for sunset. He would often get a drink from the lake but otherwise stayed very dry. |
