Sweet Lottie

Last week our family said a tearful goodbye to the sweetest dog ever.

Our poor Lottie suffered from a brain disease, seizures, and multiple orthopedic disorders, and that’s just scratching the surface of her problems. Having loved this dog as much as we did, and having lost one of our bunnies over the summer, I was concerned about how the kids would hold up when her time came. However, I was the one who sobbed and sobbed when she passed. Yep, me. The mom.

(We each cried. Mine was the ugly kind.)

Despite the numerous pains and discomforts she experienced on a daily basis, our Lottie girl loved and protected our family fiercely. Joel and I never worried about the kids when Lottie was around; she alerted us of everything!

Our sweet pup could hardly walk without falling over, and was afraid of even a bee buzzing by her. Yet when a rattle snake slithered into our yard last spring, her canine instincts kicked in powerfully and heroically. She barked, hobbled, and stayed on that snake as it tried to make its way toward our patio. We KNOW without a doubt that she was defending her kids whom she adored. She knew they would be coming out to play with her in the backyard as they did every day, several times a day.

As soon as I became aware of the snake near her, I opened the back door, calling for her to come inside. I absolutely could not get her off that snake no matter how much I hollered and begged— and this from a dog who always obeyed when we called her. It wasn’t until the snake struck and bit her on the nose that she finally retreated to me. Thankfully, I was able to get her to the vet for immediate treatment, and we had our girl with us for several more months.

People say you’re either a dog person or cat person. Well, we’re both. In fact, we’re bunny people and horse people too! But, y’all. There is just something about a dog that can’t be beat when it comes to their devotion and service to their family. I don’t think there is a more loyal animal.  And this is why we will ALWAYS have a dog.

Our Barney boy has been such a blessing to us already (despite his badness 😁). He doesn’t replace Lottie or any of our other pets we’ve said goodbye to over the years. But he’s reminded us this past weekend that there will be many more years of puppy licks and puppy loyalty to soak up and enjoy! Bring it on, Barn!

I apologize for the weepy post. Thursday’s post will be a cookie recipe, so come back and we’ll bake up some happy!