When Josh and I had only been married a few months and only in our house about a month, Joshs sister found the sweetest little black lab puppy laying in the middle of a highway. She stopped and picked her up and within a few days she became known to us as Kasey Renee. She was my baby. It was before I had my own children and I loved her just as much as if she was my child. I can still remember the first night she spent with us. She whined at my bed until I picked her up and slept wrapped near my chest. To say I loved this dog is a huge understatement.
She was there when I brought Jace home from the hospital and although a bit jealous at first she was so good to him. She was there when we brought Rylan home, she had gotten use to the routine by then. Over the years she had her tail pulled, bones shoved in her mouth and rode on many, many times. Never once did she even attempt to bite at the boys, they were her boys too. She endured vet visits (which she hated!), new puppies and growing old. She soon learned she couldn't go hunting with Josh anymore, or jump in the back of the pick-up, it was to hard on her. When she turned 14 in October I knew the time was getting close, the mere thought of it was just to hard to handle.
On November 7th, I came home from class and it was obvious she had had a stroke. She couldn't walk and was acting extremely afraid. I knew it was time. I had said from day one I would never let her suffer physically or mentally. She was doing both. I called the vet and asked them to come to our home. I laid her on her bed and I held her in my arms as she took her final breath. It was very peaceful, much more peaceful then I had imagined. She laid in the sunshine which was her very favorite place to be and we could hear the kids playing at recess across the street. I cried a lot, I still cry. I miss her every single day. She loved us so unconditionally and asked for so little in return. For 14 years, she just made our lives better.
