Rosie (also known as Critter Bean, Beanacus) departed on August 28, 2009 in her Woodland Hills residence. She gave us 12 years of happiness, loyalty, protection, love and devotion. When a companion provides so much love for so many years, you can never be prepared for their departure. To start the healing process, the following is an abbreviated attempt to summarize the last 12 years of my journey with what I will always cherish as our family companion.
For those of you who may not know the story of how Rosie chose to be with us, she was a Christmas present from Jeff in 1997. One day he was working up high on a telephone pole and to the nonstop barking of two boxers and their puppies. After completing the job, he went to the house and inquired about the puppies and if any of them would be for sale. He was told that they would be ready to take home by Christmas, so he picked out a fawn female. However, as Christmas approached and when Jeff returned, the puppy he had originally selected was ill and was given the option to select another puppy. Well, when he sat down, a female brindle leapt over the other puppies and landed on Jeff's chest. So, as luck or destiny would have it, she chose us and the journey began.
When Jeff returned home, he left her in the passenger seat and created an excuse for me to come out to the car. When I opened up the passenger door, I almost sat on her. I have to say, I was immediately taken in by her and the bonding process began with a trip to -- where else? Petco. As she tried to climb out of the cart, I figure it would be best if she picked out her own dog bed. She did and it wasn't long before her and Sherman was snuggling in it together.
There are so many moments over the years that have brought laughter and tears to my heart, like the time she lifted two burgers off the grill when Jeff went inside the house and he chased her around the yard to scold her (I'm really not sure what was funnier), or when we came home and she tore up her dog bed to the point where it looked like it snowed in the bedroom - there was so many bits of foam you couldn't even see the carpet, or the time I came home and she was waiting for me by the sliding glass door looking like the elephant man (apparently, she got bitten by a bee and one side of her face was completely swollen) or the time I came home and she had a stick lodged in her rib cavity -- both required emergency vet trips.
In her younger and spryer days, she was an explosion of energy. Running around the yard like a "rodeo dog", wiggling her but when she was excited or nervous, and she often smiled, yes-smiled as a person would.
While her mate Sherman was alive, she harassed him endlessly. Always grabbing at his collar, batting at him to engage in playful battle or a good romp around the yard, but mostly she was good at keeping him in line. Although Sherman was the alpha male, she made sure that she was in charge.
As our family grew with the birth of Trent and then Grace, she seemed to know when the moment was getting close. The week or so before each birth, she slept right next to me on the floor to guard me or let me know that it was time to get ready.
I remember one night after we brought Trent home from the hospital; it was a very difficult night. Trent wouldn't sleep, kept crying, nothing would make him happy. So, I put him on a pillow on my lap and rocked him. Well, I guess it worked because I put us both to sleep. I remember waking up and Rosie was licking the top of Trent's head to the point that it was pretty wet. Not sure if she was comforting him or trying to wake me up. Either way it worked out for us both.
As a new parent, I have to say that neither Jeff or I ever had any concerns about Rosie being around Trent or Grace as an infant. Maybe this was naïve on our part, but we never felt that she would ever harm the children in anyway. She had a lot of tolerance for Trent while he was a toddler and either licked him to get him away from her or she would relocate. Every time he cried, she was right there to see what was the matter and if she could help in anyway. By the time Grace came along, she had the experience with Trent, so she knew the drill. There were many nights where I would check on Grace and Rosie would be sleeping in her room by her crib. They developed a special connection very early and I enjoyed hearing her call for her "doggies" by the sliding glass door.
When Sherman left us in 2006, Rosie when through a severe depression. That's all she knew, she grew up with Sherman and then he was gone. After 3 weeks, we decided to search out a mate and decided we would rescue a Boxer. Rosie selected a brindle male boxer who was 2 or 3 at the time. We named him Tiberius (after James T. (Tiberius) Kirk in Star Trek). Jeff and I are convinced that thanks to Tiberius, he brought Rosie back to her old self and added a few more years onto her life.
In the last year or so, she seemed to be aging rapidly, her face getting whiter, slowing down a bit, needing more medicine, hard of hearing, her walks were sluggish, but I could still see the little puppy face that took me in 12 years before. In my heart I knew that she may not be with us long, but I hoped that she would stick it out just a bit longer.
There are so many things I will miss about her. Knocking on the sliding glass door to come in, waiting patiently for Grace to drop food from her high chair (then Grace figured out how to feed her from the high chair), accidently stepping on her beside the bed or in the hallway in the middle of the night and hearing her bark at the UPS, Gas, and DWP visitors.
Just like Sherman, Rosie went out on her own terms without putting us through the decision to make it for her. Her time had come and just as she chose to be in our lives, she chose to leave us just the same. I am ever so grateful to her for devoting 12 amazing, joyful and memorable years. She was a beautiful, sweet, and playful dog who had a tremendous amount of energy and spirit. We will miss her very much and she will always be in our hearts. As Trent says, "She was the best doggie ever."