Man's best friend

This past week, I found out that my 13 year old dachshund passed away. Other dog owners know how attached we can get to our "best friends"! We know they each have their own personality, temperaments, likes, dislikes, loves and so on. We appreciate how loyal they can be, love how they don't judge us for our appearance, money (or lack thereof), sense of humor, etc. and therefore, when we lose them, it can be quite heartbreaking.

I adopted Mac in 1999, chose him because he seemed to have some spunk, and named him after the lead singer of my favorite band Third Day. That spunk caused many problems (especially with roommates) but he also had a fun side - he LOVED toys, LOVED swimming in my grandparents pool, loved barking at people (especially men), loved sitting in my lap as we drove down the road, and loved cuddling up next to me on cold nights. I loved all these things about him (the barking could be really annoying though) but I think what I loved most was how when I would come home from a terrible day, he was so excited to see me. It was a sweet thing to come home to.

One of the things I wasn't looking forward to when moving to Mongolia was leaving him and my other dog, Jonny, back in Texas. My mom was lovely and said she'd take care of them - knowing that she's just as crazy about these boys as I am made this much easier. 

So, as I say goodbye to one of my oldest friends, here are some of my favorite pictures (I only have recent ones on this computer). And those of you who have dogs - give them a hug for me!

Driving down the road.

He'd captured the water sprayer and was not letting go of it.

Another toy bites the dust as evidenced by the stuffing hanging from his chin!

"What stuffing??"

He'd walked all around but his leash had gotten caught. There's a hint of desperation asking me to help him!

He usually barked at Rebekah but that night was feeling cuddly for some reason.

Cuddling with his "brother" Jonny.

Bath time - again desperation for help!

A comfortable position to sleep in evidently.

Goodbye Mac, AKA "Mac-a-doodle", AKA "Pooper"