Shelby Jean came into my life 9 years ago. For the first 40+ years of my life, I never really had an interest in owning a pet. However, little did I know how much my life would change when I visited the pet store to see the critter my wife said looked just like the dog she had growing up. This black and white little munchkin was part Jack Russell terrier and part Border Collie. As I attempted to play with her to see how I would feel and react to the possibility of having a puppy, the little pooch proceeded to rub herself against my legs, untie my sneakers, play with the laces, and than began to chew on them. We sat there looking and laughing at her as she continued to chomp away at the laces. I sat there pondering whether we should take her home and make her part of our family. It took all of 15 seconds. And we never regretted it. Shelby was a hand full during her puppy stage, but we found ourselves doing whatever was necessary to make her happy and let her know we really loved her. As the months and years went by, Shelby grew to become my companion, my guardian, my furry daughter. Wherever I went, Shelby was right beside me. She loved going for rides in the car, her front paws resting on the seat console, always leaning against me to let me know she was there. She enjoyed sitting in the yard under a tree for long periods of time..as long as I was there beside her. She would sit there for hours; watching the world go by and occasionally look up at me with those soft brown eyes as if to say, Hey Dad, isnt this the life ? I would give anything in the world to have her sit next to me under a tree one more time. To take her for a ride in the car one more time. To wake up in the morning and see her sound asleep in the lounge chair next to the bed. To come home from work and see her sitting there on the lawn next to my wife and getting all excited as I approached her. To see her smile and watch her get all excited as we walk in the front door as if we had been gone for a week. Just one more time. And yes, Shelby did smile. We always commented that Shelby thought she was human, not a dog. Whenever she heard her name mentioned, she would look intensely as we spoke. If she heard the word bath, she would head for the bedroom and crawl under the bed. If she heard the word yard, she would head for the door. If she heard the word blanket, she knew she needed her blanket to rest on and waited until the blanket was placed on the grass before sitting down. She responded and reacted to an unbelievable vocabulary of words. Shelby Jean was an incredibly smart dog...so smart my daughter had nicknamed her Shelby Jeanious. During the 9 years of Shelbys life, my wife and I took in 8 stray kittens. Shelby responded by accepting them as part of the family. She never snapped at them, never chased them. At times when she wanted to be alone, she would just get up and go into another room. Now that Shelby is gone, the first cat we took in still looks for her. His name is Sam (aka Bubby). Shelby and Bubby always got along. Occasionally, I would take Bubby outside with Shelby and they would sit on the lawn next to each other. For months after Shelby left us, Bubby would cry to go outside. And when I did, he would look for Shelby. For months, he slept in our bed every night stretched out between my wife and I.something he had never done before. I honestly believe God put Shelby into my life for a reason. Shelby taught me to appreciate and to love animals as is evident by the stray kittens we have adopted. And she also brought a calmness into my daily life. She was my first pet, my first dog, my forever dog. The day we had to put Shelby down was one of the worst days of my life. I cant ever remember crying that hard..and that long. And 6 months later, I am still crying. A piece of my heart was torn out. A piece of my life was taken from me. Our baby has left us. And we will not replace her. Never. I loved Shelby, we loved Shelby, and we miss her so very much. I think of her constantly throughout the day. When I wake up in the morning, I think of her, and I cry. When I go to bed at night, I think of her, and I cry. The collar she wore for the last 6 months of her life hangs over the rear view mirror in my car. Her tags are attached to my key chain. The blanket she slept on hangs over the headboard of our bed. And it still carries Shelbys scent. We set up an area in the garden with flowers, a stone with her name on it, a dog sculpture with one of Shelbys collars, a cat sculpture next to it and a sign which reads Shelbys Spot. That is where she loved to sit. We also planted a tree in her name. We have her ashes on the mantle and Shelbys ashes will be scattered with our ashes upon our deaths. We were together in life and we will be together in death. She will remain with us always.