I know I haven't posted in over three months, but my new job and other matters have kept me too busy and tired out; now, however, I am going to post again! While it may be odd that my first return-to-posting has nothing to do with comics or movies, I must post this obituary of sorts for my dog, Sheba.

My parents, my two younger brothers, and I have had her for 16 1/2 years, though she was actually 17 1/2 when we had to give her back to Heaven this Wednesday morning. She was an amazingly loving husky/shepherd mix (from what we could best determine her breed to be) and had a strong will to live to the very end.

About three months ago, she became sick and unable to walk - at that time, the veterinarian said we needed to put her down, but in a few days she was able to walk again and became better. Such an example of her tenacity to stay on in this world is so remarkable in hindsight now that we know she actually had cancer (which had nothing to do with the aforementioned illness) growing inside of her the entire time.

This past Monday, we took Sheba in for a blood test to get a refill on her thyroid medication. The vet felt a mass in her abdomen and ordered an x-ray. The image showed that my baby girl actually had a splenic hemangiosarcoma - a tumor on her spleen that filled her abdomen. There is an x-ray picture online that shows an example of such a cancerous mass, though it is nowhere nearly as big as Sheba's had become (I cannot scan her x-ray) - Sheba had hers so big that it was crushing her intestines against her spine -  and yet she carried on with great strength. We were never really sure how much Sheba could handle throughout the years, but she definitely proved to us in the end that she was far stronger than we as people ever could be.

After Monday's bad news, we planned to give her back to Heaven that week, but the decision as to exactly when was made Wednesday morning when even Sheba's strength wasn't enough and she began to cry in pain. We rushed her to the vets where they first gave her a painkiller to help calm her down. It was the first time in a long while that we had ever seen her so comfortable. At 9:53 am, St. Francis took our girl into his corner of Heaven.

I found a song that I dedicate to Sheba, and that I believe will help anyone else who has lost a loved one, man or beast. It is "Goodbye My Friend" by Linda Ronstadt. I play other songs over and over again on my computer that I relate to her, but that will always be her song.

Rest in peace, Baby Doll. We love you always.

Sheba
1988 - November 16, 2005

PS - Today is my little brother's 14th birthday, which makes Sheba's passing especially hard for him; so I more specifically dedicate this entry to him and how much Sheba still loves him from her place in the arms of angels.