Boo came to us as a skinny little stray in need of some TLC. My husband and I walked out of our house one day, and there in our front yard was an adorable little Boston Terrier. He proceeded to follow us to our car and invite himself along by jumping in. We decided to take him with us to my mothers house. We fell in love with him on that ride. We laughed so hard and so long on the ride that I really thought we were going to wreck. He was such a funny little guy. He looked like a pouty little old man, with his lips hanging down so far you could barely see his bottom jaw. We searched for his owner, but no one ever claimed him and for that, my husband and I were glad. He was instantly a part of the family.
The vet estimated him to be born probably in 2002. He was in good health except for being slightly under weight, and in bad need of a nail trimming.
Hardly an hour went by that he didn’t make us laugh about something. The funny way he would have to have something in his mouth in the morning to “prance” with. It didn’t matter what it was. A piece of clothing, a toy, even paper, as long as he could get it in his mouth. Boo loved raw onions, that was his favorite thing in the world. I have never seen another dog eat onions before.
Boo was a very calm, sweet, laid back dog. I could put him in any position, and I do mean ANY, and he would stay there until I moved him. Most of the time he would fall asleep in that position. Any time you moved him while he was sleeping, he would make these moaning and groaning sounds as if you were causing him discomfort. I guess it was his way of telling you to leave him alone and let him sleep.
Everyone who ever met him loved him, and he loved them right back. The first time I took him to the vet, the woman behind the counter was ooohing and awwwing over him. He proceeded to limp around the vets office. I tried to explain to her that he did that for attention, but she looked at me like I was crazy. But he did do that for attention. Any time he met a new person that baby talked him, he would start up a limp and limp around them in circles. Boo loved nothing more than to be injured because injuries meant sympathy. One time he cut his foot and had to wear a bandage for a few days. Lord how he loved that! He limped around on his bandaged foot like it was broken. It didn’t bother him until the bandage was on, then all he wanted was attention. We laughed about that for weeks.
Boo was originally named Bugsy, but somehow I started calling him Bugsy Boo. It quickly got shortened to Boo and he was only called Bugsy when he was being scolded. It seemed every day we had a new nickname for him. Boo Boo, Booey, Ooey Gooey Booey, Lips, whatever popped in our heads at the time.
We started referring to all Boston Terriers as Boo Boos, infact we still do. Anything that involved Boo was somehow made into a form of his name. He loved to be wrapped in a blanket. I would tuck the blanket around him and he looked like a little burrito. We started calling that a BOOritto. When we did refer to Boston Terriers by their names, we called them BOOston Terriers. He loved to be carried around on your shoulder like a bazooka, which quickly became a BOOzooka.
Boo was a constant source of love and humor. He was such a great little guy. Whatever you wanted to do, he was all for it. If you were ready to play, so was he. If you were ready to sleep, he beat you to the bed. He was such a cuddle bug. His favorite place was in your lap, upside down, snoring the whole time.
All of our six dogs got along pretty well, but Boo was the best buddy of our Chihuahua, Peanut. Wherever one was, the other one had to be too. They ate together, pottied together, slept together, played together, you name it.
My husband and I went to visit my mom one day. We left the dogs in our fenced in back yard, as we often did on nice days. When we returned that evening, Boo didn’t meet us at the gate. I knew he was dead. That was the only thing that would have kept him from meeting us. I found him under the deck. He had been dead for a little while. He had bite wounds on his neck and on further inspection, his ribs had been broken. I will never know exactly what happened. I know either our lab, or our lab/shepard did it. They were the only ones with blood on them and teeth big enough to make those holes.
I blame myself. If I hadn’t have left him in the yard, if I had just left him in the house he would be here right now, snuggled up with Peanut on the couch. It wasn’t a planned trip, just spur of the moment. If we had of just stayed home he would be with us. Instead all we have are pictures and memories.
It’s been 8 days since then. I have cried every single day, multiple times. I miss him so bad it hurts. It feels like nothing will ever be the same again. Everything is so different. I expect to wake up in the morning with him prancing around with something in his mouth, ready to start the day. No more trips to Petco, no more playing in the park, no more cuddling on the couch, no more BOOzooka, no more BOOritto. Peanut was so sad. He just layed by the door, waiting patiently for his buddy to come back. Little did he know, Boo was never coming back.
My husband got another Boston, and even though he is a sweet little pup, I didn’t want him. I knew that no dog would ever take the place of Boo, and I didn’t even want to try. I didn’t want another Boston in the house just yet. I see him out of the corner of my eye, and although he looks different, for a split second I forget Boo is gone. I think “well there is Boo on the couch.” Then I remember that he is gone. The new pup makes my husband feel a little bit better, and I am glad of that, but it doesn’t help me any. Nothing seems to. I guess the only thing that does that is time.
After my husband goes to sleep, I cry myself to sleep every night. I don’t know that I have ever felt this way in my life. I’ve lost one of my best friends in the whole world. Not too many people understand that. Too many people don’t know or care the love that only a dog can give you. They want you to just “get over it” after all, it’s “just a dog.” They don’t understand that Boo was a part of my family, a very dearly loved part that I miss deeply.
Boo will be with me until the day I die, nestled safely in my heart. As long as I am breathing, I will always love and miss him. He was one of kind.
~ Rest in peace sweet Boo Boo. We love you. You will never be forgotten.~
| Boo |
| Tracie & Jimmy Denson |