Today is this sweetest good girl's 14th birthday. Best friend to my mother, myself and our family.
This picture is from the birthday party we threw her on Memorial Day, with our whole family and a bunch of the human friends she's made over the years. She had a tennis ball cake, we sang her happy birthday (both pictured here), she ran around the pool and played catch (her favorite thing to do), she jumped and nose-booped her giant ball (her other favorite thing to do), she got lots of love and pets from all her friends, and then mom and I cuddled her all night.
After a lifetime of ease, Sady's 13th revolution showed us her lucky cat side, as with the same gentle and loving grace she's always had, she pushed through 8 difficult lives since this time last year.
The 9th unexpected life we've been so blessed to enjoy with her over the last few months is nearing an end, as she has been diagnosed with an untreatable cancer.
She has good days when you wouldn't know she's sick (such as her birthday party), but the bad days are hard on her, so very hard for us, and are becoming more frequent.
Not sure how much time she has left. But it's not a lot. But even at 14 years, the top end expectancy for her breed and size, it will not be anywhere near enough. I know so many of you reading this will deeply understand this feeling, but it is new to me. Grief and loss is something I am fortunate to not have much experience with, and I have never loved an animal like I love her.
The unconditional love and affection Sady has for me is something I needed, and has opened my heart for all dogs (and other animals) in a way it hadn't been before.
I will be eternally grateful to have spent her lifetime with her, to have had a whole extra year with her we didn't expect to have, and to have been so fortunate to receive so many beautiful lessons about what it means to fully care for another being, companionship, love, gentleness, kindness, calm and quiet strength, service to others, sickness and death... and everything I always wanted to know about tennis balls.
Happy 14th Birthday, Sady. Thank you for being my friend.
#goldendoodle #seniordog 
