It was about the third week of college and I had just gotten out of my late class. We had a meeting that one of our RA’s had set up for us to make journals. I was with one of my roommates, and we were just talking to the other girls. My mom FaceTimed me and I could barely hear her, so I hung up and told her to text me. She sent a text “Call us when you can.” I replied, “Is it important?” “Kinda, just call us when you can,” she said. If you know my parents, they do not tell me to call them back if they know I am busy or having fun with my friends. And they never say something is important enough to disrupt what I am doing, to call them back
I waited a little bit because I did not want to leave my friends, but the weight of what it could be was too much, so I walked outside to call them. My instinct knew that it was bad and with a gut feeling I picked up my phone. They started off the conversation by saying “sweetie, this is not something you are going to want to hear. Are you somewhere that you can go back to your dorm if you need?” I said yes and they proceeded to tell me that one of my dogs, Gizmo, had been attacked by the neighbor’s pit bull and that he was no longer with us.
I burst out in tears, shaking, about to fall. I had not seen my sweet boy in three weeks, and I was going home next weekend to see him and my little dog, Hazel. My heart was crushed, and all I could ask was if he suffered. My dad has never sugar-coated life for me, and he was not going to now, “Sweetheart I am not going to lie to you, he did a little.” I will save you the details of how my baby was killed but know that he was protecting our little dog, Hazel. Gizmo was the goofiest dog I have ever seen, constantly had his tongue out, and you never really knew what he was thinking. I was in the 5th grade when I got him and had spent my birthday money, I saved to bring him home. Gizmo was going to be 9 in January, and it hurts knowing he had more years of his life to live. Our little dog was lucky to not have been killed too, mostly thanks to her brother, I am lucky my dad happens to be outside, and I am lucky for a dog that was willing to put himself to put his life on the line for another.
My parents bought me a little stuffed animal that looked like him so we could remember him. It is hard losing a dog, or any animal, they become a huge part of your life, and you become their entire world. Just remember to value your animals, give them that extra belly rub, give them another treat, because you never know when you are going to lose them, and when you do you don’t want to have any regrets. So, if you have an animal, and you see them today, or when you go home for the weekend, give them an extra hug for me, because I wish I could have hugged Gizmo one last time.