Author: CMS

“If you love something, set it free.
If it doesn’t come back, it never was yours.”

All my life I had wanted a dog.
Every chance I had I’d hint about it.

“What would you like for Christmas?”
“A puppy.”

“What would you like for your birthday?”
“A puppy.”

I even tried “I’ll pay for him!” I guess $.25, a rubber band and some pocket lint wouldn’t buy me a ball of energy, would it?

I eventually had convinced my parents to let me have a puppy. I was elated. I couldn’t believe it. We bought “Gizmo”, the Chinese Crested Powder Puff, at a pet store. Little did we know, he was sick. He had Kennel Cough, problems with his ears, and with his tear ducts. We eventually had decided it was best to take him back and get refunded our money.

The day we took him back was the worst. I cried. I missed him. I spent so much time with him he grew on my. He was part of me. I was house training him and he was learning. He was my best friend. He slept on my bed. He went everywhere with me .. and now he’s gone. Maybe it was the sickness. He was sick and I was ‘nursing’ him back to health. I gave him his medication and his ear drops. I went to the vet with him. All I wanted was for him to get better.

A few days later, he was back. The family missed him too much. Luckily, the store owner agreed to pay all the vet bills until he was better.

I was so happy. I had my friend back. He was here again. He came back to me. This was meant to be!

Unfortunately, since he was sick for so long, he was unable to get his rabies shots on time. He had his first shots, but that was it. He had gotten hold of a bat. Nobody knew how. All we knew was that he had it in his mouth.
We had to get it tested.

The next day, we took the bat to the health department. They told us that they would get back to us as soon
as they knew the results.

The following day we waited for the call. Late afternoon my mother called the health department. They said that it was a good sign; if there was a problem, we would have known by then. Not but a half an hour later did we get the call. The bat was rabid. We had two choices: put him to sleep or quarantine him for six months. He’s only a puppy!! We can’t lock him up and allow him contact with one person for six whole months! It would cause many problems with the development of the dog. He wouldn’t be house trained, he wouldn’t be socialized. He wouldn’t get the proper attention a puppy needs.

The next day we took him to the vet. We were told that it would be best to put him to sleep. It would be less painful for everyone. He wouldn’t suffer and
we wouldn’t need to watch it.

Though I only had him for a short period of time, I grew attached. He was part of me and I was part of him. We can never change what happened to our beloved Gizmo. Even under the best supervision can accidents happen.

I love you, Gizmo. I want you to know that you will always have a place in my heart. A place that belongs to you and only you. You were my first dog. Though you may not be my last, you will always hold that special place in my heart.
God bless you, Gizmo.