Going way back to the beginning of this blog, you’ll find all sorts of blog posts.  Some are fun–the tales of The Old Horsetrader, for instance.  Some are by other novelists, who have shared stories about their own beloved pets.  And a good share are about our own little menagerie.

Time marches on… and some of our aging, much loved pets have crossed that Rainbow Bridge to the other side.  Do you follow me on Facebook?  I’m at www.facebook.com/roxannerustand, and I post fun and poignant pieces about animals there, almost every day.

Recently I found the sweetest picture to share on Facebook, showing a green, verdant place filled with healthy, happy, contented dogs–all waiting in heaven for their human friends to join them.  It really touched my heart, because I’d sure love to meet all of my old friends there!

We lost our fluffy, sweet old Border collie mix about a month ago,  Harold was way too big, but until arthritis made it too hard to jump on the sofa with us, he liked to drape himself across our laps.  He loved attention and had the sweetest face!

He had health issues and had been on medications for several years….and we knew that every morning, there’d be puddles to clean up, but he was still our sweet Harold, and we were willing to do what it took to keep him with us.  But…this fall it finally came to the point where he refused to take his pills and wouldn’t eat, and no matter what treat we tried, he wouldn’t eat them either.

And the vet said, it was time.

Our house seems empty now.  Elmo–our other dog, whom we found at a shelter several years ago– is sad and dejected unless our son’s dogs come to play.  And now, I’ve begun to look for a rescue dog to bring into our family.  I’d love to find a middle-aged adult golden retriever, knowing that puppies are easy to place, but adults have a harder time at finding a forever home.

I’d love to hear from you about your own pets, and how much they have meant to you!

Blessings,

Roxanne