In Memoriam: 13 years with Bonnie

Tough moments for every pet owner - realizing that your journey with a beloved canine (or feline) companion has come to the end AND then following through on that ultimate decision.

The Powers' Family journey with Bonnie has come to an end after 13 years.  Although it may have taken us a little while to realize the decision we had to make, we finally did...today.  Understandably emotional. For my brother, sister, and I, Bonnie was a dog we grew up with.  We all went through high school with her.  We all "flew the coop" and went off to college, but when we returned home, who was the recipient of our first hugs and kisses?  You guessed it...Bonnie.

Bonnie was born with a heart murmur that got worse with age.  About a year and a half ago, she started having seizures when she got excited.  We tried making our routine a lot "calmer" to help her, but we eventually had to put her on a slurry of medications to combat the seizures, the heart failure, and the fluid building in her lungs.  Despite it all, this spunky, persistent, ball-obsessed dog lived on.  While I'll spare you the uncomfortable details of her last several months with us, it was obvious on Christmas Day the decision that had to be made.

Enough with this depressing stuff.  The rest of this blog is a celebration of Bonnie's life with us in pictures and some video.  If you are like me, you'll need a Kleenex (or two or three) handy.  While she isn't your dog, you'll inevitable think of yours...sorry.

Bonnie as a pup. Late 2000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hurry up lady.  Throw the ball.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bonnie is reunited with her older "sister", Rexy.

Rexy

 

Farewell sweet Butternut!

Blast From The Past

Not inspired today to get creative, so I browsed my photo library for an oldie.

I present (from left to right) Bonnie and Rexy. I estimate this was taken in 2001.

Sick Day

I cashed in on my first sick day in 3 years. Today started off rough, but I got to enjoy some quality time with Bonnie while watching old episodes of the American version of Being Human.

Heat Seeking Missile

Bonnie's favorite winter spot. The heating vent.

Happy Holidays

Haven't really been motivated to post anything lately.  Still not motivated, but I will entertain you all with a recent video.

We call this the Gargoyle.  Enjoy...and hopefully it won't be too long before the next post.

B & W Photos

I haven't forgotten about my blog. In fact, I think of it often. But when I have time to actually write something, my mind goes completely blank. Well, to solve this problem, I opened my closet and looked for inspiration. I found it in an old bin of black and white photos. One of my favorite classes at Cal was the 8 week summer class on Black and White Photography. I learned to develop my own film, enlarge negatives, "burning", "dodging", and processing prints. It was amazing! Creating my own darkroom and processing lab is on the top of my list of things to do when I'm a millionaire. ;)

Over the course of the class, I directed my lens towards many subjects, but I did my final project on animals at the SF Zoo. Some of the photos from this project can be seen on Facebook.

But perhaps the most meaningful photos were of the critters around the house - Bonnie, Rexy, and Molly. Lincoln was not in our lives...he wasn't even born yet!

Enjoy these negatives...I know I did when I dug them up. Click on the photo to make it bigger.

**Bonnie is the doggie in the pool. Rexy is the doggie lounging around (RIP Rexy). And there is 1 picture of Molly the cat (RIP Molly).**