Remembering the Pets We Lost in 2011

I remember the day we brought Blue home.

It was a sweltering Arizona summer day in 2005, and I was five months pregnant. We drove from our Tempe, AZ apartment west past Goodyear, AZ to a dusty farm in the middle of nowhere that was advertising miniature Dachshund puppies.

A lovely woman greeted us at the door and said she had a large litter of 8-week-old puppies we could choose from. At first, I was enamored with the runt of the litter – a ridiculously adorable little black puppy that couldn't have weighed more than a pound – but when little chocolate dappled "Punkin" bumbled up to me with his big ears flopping, stumbling and falling as he danced circles around me, I knew I had to have him.

We brought him back to our apartment, re-named him "Blue" (his eyes were the color of the clear Arizona sky) and introduced him to Coconut, our 2-year-old black-and-tan miniature Dachshund. They became fast friends, and a few months later, our family grew again with the birth of our son, Ethan.

No matter how hard baby Ethan pulled on Blue's tail, yanked on his ears or fell on top of him as he was learning how to walk, Blue never once barked, snarled or snapped at him. Blue would run circles around him, and Ethan would squeal in delight. They grew up together.

Blue was a sweet, lovable dog. We had six years with him before he passed away this spring following a sudden illness.

He is buried in my son's father's back yard in Royal Oak. We wrapped him in his favorite blanket (one of those fleece ones with the ties around the edges that he'd loved since he was a puppy) and laid him to rest with a few of our favorite objects, including a necklace I'd worn since our son was born. Ethan, now 6  years old, helped his dad fill in the hole.

We only had a few years with Blue, but they were wonderful, memorable years. Ethan still asks about Blue, what we think he's doing in heaven, how much he misses him. We can tell Coconut, who tried to wake Blue up after we brought him home from the vet the last time, still misses her adopted little brother.

We'll never forget Blue. How could we? He was a part of our family. We'll never forget how he used to snort when he got excited, how adorably dumb and sweet he was, and how he could cheer you up just by stumbling over and plopping down next to you.

We love you, Blue, and we miss you.

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If you'd like to write a full tribute, like this one to Blue, send it via email to jen.anesi@patch.com, or add it as an announcement here on the site.