Maddie

Maddie

She was the littlest and the last of a litter of 3. Her original name was Luella. She had picked me to be her mommy. Maddie weighed a wee 2 lbs when I picked her up in Iowa. My first couple days with her, I thought to myself, “wow I am going to have to take her outside to potty for years to come, am I willing to do that?” In time I answered my own question: yes. She’s worth every single second of mine.

As a pup, she learned how to play with my feelings. She refused to eat dry food. But eventually she gave in after a few days. Her separation anxiety was really bad, from that she learned how to open doors and climb gates. Soft treats were her favorite that she loved to eat. She will do anything for food. One time she dragged a pizza box from the recycling bin to the living room. Another time she knocked down the trashcan all over the living room. Since then I now put the trash under the kitchen sink. However, that little stinker is so smart. One evening I couldn’t find her and when I called for her, she crawled out from under the sink cabinet. This silly girl.

She gets frustrated when I go to bed and she can’t climb in bed with me. She also gets impatient when it comes to treats. She’ll do all the tricks she knows in sequence without queue. When she gets frustrated she would grunt. She would also follow me everywhere when she saw that I was cooking or eating.

She can be so mischievous at times. I once had a table full of oil paints while I was at work. As I came home from work, I found tiny paw prints all over the table. Maddie doesn’t always listen to what I say but her ears will perk and she would give me a clueless look. Maddie likes to sun bathe in window sun patches throughout the house. She also liked sitting outside on the grass. She would sometimes crawl under the blanket when I asked her to and snuggle on the curve of my belly. She loved playing tug-a-war with anything she could find; toy, dish towel, sweater, blanket. She was my little guard dog and would bark at the door at every chance she could. However, once she meets you her little tail would wag back and forth so happily! She’ll give you little kisses and want to sit on your lap immediately. Anyone who met her always wanted to take her home.

Maddie hated car rides, baths, and the vet’s office. But she was so good about it. The groomer and vet always had good things to say about her.

For 7 years, my morning consists of a white fluffy ball greeting me at my feet with her stretching. She would immediately lie down for a belly rub. The word potty excited her. She always took her sweet time to sniff every single scent outside. When Keegan came into our lives, she learned how to be less sassy and her heart grew a little bigger. She would share a bed with Keegan and save him some food. Whenever Keegan and I come back from a run, Maddie would always greet Keegan first with kisses and scratches. Sometimes she’ll randomly sniff Keegan’s face or belly.

On August 20th, the night of Maddie’s 7th birthday, she was attacked by a husky. She suffered a flailed chest and punctured lungs, which required immediate surgery that evening. Surgery went well but she was struggling to recover the following day. She spent an hour with mommy that following evening and later left the world around 7pm on August 21st.

I miss seeing her every morning and night. I miss seeing her hop to her bowl of food when it’s feeding time. I miss her following me around and giving me those puppy eyes when I’m cooking or eating. I wish I’d given her more food scraps. She was a fearless little warrior and I miss her every day.

My little one, I am so blessed you came into my life. You filled my heart with so much love and happiness. Sorry we could not be together longer. I hope to be your mommy again someday. I love you so much.