Baloo was a 6 week old chocolate lab puppy my husband bought me after our second miscarriage. The doctor wasn't sure we would be able to have babies so Baloo was our practice/substitute baby. He looked just like a baby bear cub. He was so tiny he fit in one hand and his eyes were these deep pools of brown you could just lose yourself in. The funny thing is, I am horribly allergic to animals of all kinds. But in my grief he warmed me up and made me smile when I wasn't sure I knew how. As he grew he became an outside dog and I am became a proud dog owner. About a year later we had our first child, Zachary. Baloo proved he was the protector of our new family pretty quick. At a gathering to show off our new baby, my best friend's husband reached over to take a glance only to receive a bite that took a chunk of thigh with it. Everyone in the room knew no one would harm us as long as Baloo was around. We went on to have 2 more children. If you wanted to find Baloo you simply had to locate the kids. If they were riding bikes, he was following. If they were on the swings, he was sitting at the bottom of the slide. If they went next door to grandma's house, Baloo was their faithful companion.
We named Baloo after the bear in The Jungle Book. But as the years went on most people just called him Blue. A lot of people thought this was his name because we were such true liberal Democrats, Blue kinda made sense. And Baloo took his status as a Democratic dog seriously. Some dogs don't like men, some dogs don't like strangers. My dog didn't like Republicans! I kid you not. We had more than 14 Obama house parties with lots of strangers and not once did he bark at them. But let the Republican neighbor cross our property line and he would bark up a storm. In fact one weekend he went without food rather than let said neighbor into the garage to feed him. The last few years Baloo was getting old and slow. He had arthritis and joint pain that made walking pretty hard. Every year we said "This will be his last." But he remained a faithful dog to my children, following them to the cul-de-sac even though it might take him twice as long. We bought a yellow lab 2 years ago in hopes it would keep Baloo company and keep him around a little bit longer. Baloo tolerated Sasha but just barely. Most days Baloo was content to hang out in the garage or the back porch. A few weeks ago my husband was mowing the grass. As I looked outside I noticed a strange sight. Baloo was following behind the lawn mower. Baloo did this for over an hour, walking a few steps behind the mower as my husband cut 1 1/2 acres of grass. It was as if he wanted to spend time with us no matter how it was spent. Last night my son came running in the house to tell me Baloo had collapsed. My husband gently picked him up and placed on the porch. The kids gathered around Baloo and said their good byes. We were all crying. My son brought Baloo his favorite tennis ball and he looked at us as much as to say, "Really?" After about 20 minutes he slowly raised his head, got up, and wandered off without a backwards glance. This morning we opened the door dreading what we would find only to be greeted by his wagging tail. But as the morning went on his back legs kept giving out. We finally decided it was time. My husband drove Baloo to the vet and she gave him the shot that would send him to his final nap. I never pictured myself as a dog owner. And I certainly never imagined I would be a sniveling, crying mess over a dog. But Baloo was our faithful companion for over 13 years. He protected our family and gave us love and loyalty and asked nothing in return. Good bye old man. I hope we loved you enough and I hope you are at peace.