My Best Friend: Shooter May 5, 1993 to Feb. 8, 2001 Yesterday I lost my best friend. For seven and a half years, she stood by me no matter what. She never cared where we were or what we were doing; as long as she was with me, she was happy. She showed me what unconditional love really is, and what is really important in life. I will always love her with every ounce of my heart, and I wish she could come home. I am blessed with so many wonderful memories of our short time together, and I will cherish them for the rest of my life. Shooter was always different from other dogs. Even when I picked her up at six weeks old, you could see that she had a very unique personality. I remember that beautiful June afternoon when I first saw her. While some of the puppies came running up immediately, and a few were scared and hiding, this sweet little brown one was a little cautious, but not afraid. Once she decided that she could trust me, she just came over and stayed with me while the others went about doing other things. Right then I knew she was perfect. When I brought her home, her inner light shone through like a gift from heaven. She was very goofy and playful one minute, and wanting to just lay and cuddle the next. I loved her from the first day, and that love grew with each passing moment. As she grew, the brown colour lightened to red and tan, and our bond strengthened exponentially. We had a few other pets in our lives, and shooter liked them all, but she was happiest when she was the only one who got the attention. She almost died when she was six months old, after contracting Parvo. After a week at the vet, she came back to me looking sick and underweight, but she had made it through. While we travelled together and lived in hotels, she was the best companion I could wish for. When we finally settled down and got a real home, she made it her domain right away. She was great with Tianna, even though she had never really been around kids. When Darian arrived, Shooter was extremely docile towards the treatment that an infant can unknowingly inflict. With every new obstacle that came her way, she them handled wonderfully. While knowing when to be mature and obedient, she never lost her playful puppy attitude. The only time she misbehaved was when she was alone. All she wanted, was to be with me. Shooter lost her battle with cancer after a hard fight and surgery. Up until the last couple of days, she hid the pain she was in and still got really excited to play and go for walks. Taking her in to let her go was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do, but I know that it was the best thing for her. After all the love and happiness that she gave to me over the years, I owed it to her to let her go and relieve her pain. Shooter will remain special to me for the rest of my life. I love you Shooter, and I always will.