Teaching love through loss - RIP Cooper

After almost 13 great years (or 91 in dog years), our boy Cooper entered doggie heaven early Saturday morning after a long, hard fight.  He will always hold an extremely special place in my heart as he taught me so much about responsibility as I transitioned into adulthood.  I have cried so many times the past day and a half, thinking back through all the change we incurred together and how we ended up so happy at this point in our lives.  He was exactly what I needed at the early age of 23 and I hope he knows how much we all loved having him in our lives. 

Cooper entered my life during the early years of Ryan's and my relationship.  After having just moved to Nashville together, we knew it wasn't going to work out between us at that moment in time and it was best for him to take care of Brooks, whom I still got to see regularly.  A month or 2 later, I received a call from my mom as she was walking into K-Mart in Lexington and saw a bassinet full of Weimeraner puppies for sale.  $150 and a car ride to the 1/2 way point between Lexington and Nashville later, I had a 4-month old puppy to keep me company.  He was far too much responsibility for me at the time but those are the circumstances in life that teach you the most.

As I was transitioning into adulthood, Cooper was transitioning into becoming the best dog for me.  He was akward, big (well, maybe huge is a better word), clumsy, messy, loud and often times frustrating as he was a nervous wreck for 100% of his life, but despite these qualities, he was perfect for me.  He was my companion, protector, and running mate that laid next to me through many tough times and smiled at me during the good ones.  I am struggling right now to move past the mental images of the last night of his life but know that over time, I am sure I will only remember the good ones, like the following:

• introducing him to his buddy Brooks at Percy Priest Park in Nashville
• hearing the stories from the Bates' about when they took care of him while I was at boot camp - Sarah ran hundreds of miles with him on the country roads of Centerville, TN and Doug was kept awake many of those nights by Cooper's constant pacing (one of Cooper's annoying qualities)
• throwing frisby and actually watching him jump in the air to catch it on the beaches of Virginia Beach when Bob came to bring me bottles of Ale-8 and fix something in my house
• running the trails in Virginia Beach with him at my side as I trained for several 1/2 marathons
• watching and listening to him chase down anyone who came within 50 feet of my house
• reuniting Cooper and Brooks as Ryan and I made the transition into marriage
• hearing the story of him arriving on my mom's door step with his 1st kill - a skeleton of something from the woods
• watching him sniff every new piece of baby equipment as we set it up at our 1st home
• watching him interact at times with the kids - it was rare but when it happened, it was special

People have texted me so many funny stories of their memories of Cooper!  Many of them positive, many of them not (like I said, he was messy and nervous) but either way, they are all a part of his life.  My apologies for any damage he did to anyone I love - he was quite the character.

The deterioration and loss of Cooper has helped us teach the tough lesson of life to Kate.  We know Jake is too young to have memories of him but Kate will hopefully remember the love we showed both dogs every day.  She has taken the loss well, crying very hard at times but then twisting it into her own memory.  She was very curious of how we got him into the back of Ryan's truck at 4:00 a.m. to make the trip to the ER Vet and as we were describing how we scooted him onto a blanket and carried him out, she said, "that's just like they did to Winter, mom, don't you remember".  It fact, it was a lot like Winter from the movie the Dolphin Tale, which we saw together at the theater several months back.  The timing of life can be amazing at times.  She asked for a picture of him in her room, which melted my aching heart.

Brooks had a really tough 1st day without his wingman but seems to be a little better today.  He was by his side every moment of the tough night we had on Friday, even at times laying his head right by Cooper's belly.  We are hoping this is the primary contributor to Brook's exhaustion on Saturday.  Ryan stayed with him yesterday as the kids and I made the trek to Lexington to ensure he was okay.  Thankfully, he seems to have a little pep in his step back now.

So onward and upwards.  We are going to enjoy the time we have left with Brooks and give him all the love that we can.  Thank you to all of you that have reached out to us the past 2 days.  Your love makes me smile during these emotional 1st few days.