Chloe
A donation was made in memory of Chloe by Drs. Goebel, Batdorf, Stidham, Hamack and Meyer at Vista Veterinary Hospital on Feb 13, 2019.
Our hearts broke today, January 8, 2019. Our beautiful Chloe Belle passed away this afternoon. Although she was 17, which is quite old for a Labrador Retriever, it was unexpected.
The house was exceptionally quiet this evening. Surprisingly, 12 dog paws trampling through the house are noticeably quieter than 16.
Chloe was Ryan’s dog. He got her when she was approximately six months old. She was about eight years old when I came into the picture. My Aunt Linda had sent me an e-mail telling me about a nice man she thought I should meet. She mentioned some of his interests and her last sentence included something along the lines of, “and he has a dog.” My aunt should have been in sales because my interest was piqued at that point. She connected us up and I eventually got to meet Ryan and his spectacular frisbee dog who loved to swim in the ocean.
Chloe didn’t take to me immediately. I don’t think she appreciated that I took the passenger side of her best friend’s ride while she got bumped to the backseat of the truck. It was apparent I would have to up my game to win over this pooch. I did that by sneaking her human food. (Ryan said I ruined all his training of teaching her she couldn’t have food from the table. Guilty! Chloe was such an obedient dog that I thought she was deserving of special treats and, besides, her begging never became obnoxious.) We became besties. I taught her how to destroy her stuffed toys, which made her really excited. I let her move to the pillow section rather than down at the foot of the bed. And I sang her silly songs with her name in them that made her wag her tail.
When Ryan would ask me what I wanted for my birthday or Christmas I would tell him, ”Your dog.” He gave me 25% ownership in Chloe the first Christmas we spent together. The next Christmas he gave me 24% ownership. He would never give me any more than that even though all I was asking for was just 1% more. Chloe was his dog...the first dog he ever owned as an adult and I don’t blame him for retaining majority ownership. He told me, after she passed, that he wanted to give me that last 1% while we were at the vet saying our goodbyes but he couldn’t find the words at the time. The thing is, I never needed any percentage...she had 100% of my heart all of these years and that’s what matters.
Chloe would wake me up multiple times every night feigning the need to relieve herself, but really she was lonesome and wanted company. As frustrating as it could be when I was tired, I would get up and go out with her. I reminded myself that some day I would no longer receive wake up calls and yearn for just one more restless night with my girl. Tonight I won’t be roused from slumber by a cold nose prodding my feet and I don’t like it one bit.
I used to tell her that I was bummed that I didn’t come into her life until she was eight years old. I wished I would get to have her for a lot of years. How fortunate am I that I got to spend almost ten years with my beautiful girl?
Have fun chasing frisbees in heaven, Chloe Belle. Thank you for the memories! xoxo
The house was exceptionally quiet this evening. Surprisingly, 12 dog paws trampling through the house are noticeably quieter than 16.
Chloe was Ryan’s dog. He got her when she was approximately six months old. She was about eight years old when I came into the picture. My Aunt Linda had sent me an e-mail telling me about a nice man she thought I should meet. She mentioned some of his interests and her last sentence included something along the lines of, “and he has a dog.” My aunt should have been in sales because my interest was piqued at that point. She connected us up and I eventually got to meet Ryan and his spectacular frisbee dog who loved to swim in the ocean.
Chloe didn’t take to me immediately. I don’t think she appreciated that I took the passenger side of her best friend’s ride while she got bumped to the backseat of the truck. It was apparent I would have to up my game to win over this pooch. I did that by sneaking her human food. (Ryan said I ruined all his training of teaching her she couldn’t have food from the table. Guilty! Chloe was such an obedient dog that I thought she was deserving of special treats and, besides, her begging never became obnoxious.) We became besties. I taught her how to destroy her stuffed toys, which made her really excited. I let her move to the pillow section rather than down at the foot of the bed. And I sang her silly songs with her name in them that made her wag her tail.
When Ryan would ask me what I wanted for my birthday or Christmas I would tell him, ”Your dog.” He gave me 25% ownership in Chloe the first Christmas we spent together. The next Christmas he gave me 24% ownership. He would never give me any more than that even though all I was asking for was just 1% more. Chloe was his dog...the first dog he ever owned as an adult and I don’t blame him for retaining majority ownership. He told me, after she passed, that he wanted to give me that last 1% while we were at the vet saying our goodbyes but he couldn’t find the words at the time. The thing is, I never needed any percentage...she had 100% of my heart all of these years and that’s what matters.
Chloe would wake me up multiple times every night feigning the need to relieve herself, but really she was lonesome and wanted company. As frustrating as it could be when I was tired, I would get up and go out with her. I reminded myself that some day I would no longer receive wake up calls and yearn for just one more restless night with my girl. Tonight I won’t be roused from slumber by a cold nose prodding my feet and I don’t like it one bit.
I used to tell her that I was bummed that I didn’t come into her life until she was eight years old. I wished I would get to have her for a lot of years. How fortunate am I that I got to spend almost ten years with my beautiful girl?
Have fun chasing frisbees in heaven, Chloe Belle. Thank you for the memories! xoxo
