This coming Wednesday we say goodbye to our 2nd Guide Dog as she goes off to the Hearing Ear Program at the Lions Club Guide Dog Facility. I was just reading my blog about our 1st dog Gia, who became a Service Dog living with her client in Halifax N.S.
Like Gia, Athens is a female yellow Labrador Retriever! And that’s where the similarities stop! 😂 I don’t know why but it seems harder this time…maybe because I know our family really can’t handle a regular dog…the money, the responsibility, the worry…it makes me sad. Plus, I know our youngest longs for a dog for her very own…but only wants some of the responsibility….so that is always a HARD NOOOO!!! The other 2 are too busy with their lives and are quite prepared to say goodbye. My husband has mixed emotions which he would never say, and I am just sad that she is leaving…happy that it’s one less thing to organize, schedule, feed, worry about and mother!! But it is making me sad as she has gotten funny and sweet…. age did wonders for this dog.
I feel like the universe gave me my children in dog form. First born was a rule follower, did what he was told, super scheduled kid…just like Gia the dog.
Second born…. wild, spirited, broke rules…age did wonders for her…. just like Athens the dog!
Our dogs we foster and our children we raise are both very similar…they come into our lives…we gather a village to help support, teach and nurture. We live a very big life rich in experience, activities and love and respect!!
We raise our children and our dogs to not need us anymore, to be able to do things for themselves…(seriously I’m am still talking about the dog too) to want more out of life and to have more experiences and go off to see their own world!!! Just like my children, our dogs never belonged to us in the first place…we just gave them the best possible start anyone could have ever given them❤️ Goodbye Athens, go out into this world and make us proud!!! 🙏🏻