My Soul Dog

Leopold (aka Floof, Floofer, Sir Barksalot, Sir Slobber, Prince Leopold)

Though not my first dog, nor my last  he has left dinner plate sized paw prints on my soul and heart in ways no other of my adored furry loved ones have.

I had only ever had labrador retrievers before him.  I was a foster parent and saw some mutts stay with us too.  I had paused my fostering for a bit while I processed the loss of my super-duper yellow Lab, Bailey.  Then I received an urgent request to pick up a 6 or 7 month old Great Pyranees/Maremma Sheepdog mix from the shelter and foster him until his forever family could be found.  My rubber arm bent in all the ways and I was off to pick this guy up.  Turns out Leo was born and raised in a barn - literally.  He had no idea what anything was.  He had no clue what a collar was and how a leash was supposed to work.  He was scared and nervous of everything.  I fell hard for him.  Perhaps because I understood what anxiety felt like.  I couldn't let him go to another family and I formally adopted him.  We developed a bond like no other I've experienced.  We just "got" one another.  

Leo lived for just over 10 years.  10 years of hiking in the woods together, hanging on the couch, him listening to me make up and sing songs of endearment to him and his fur siblings.  Leo passed away suddenly of a suspected heart attack.  My world shattered.  I had never wept so hard over a loss (and I've lost a parent).  Leopold's memory and life lessons guide me still.  I'm sure he would love to sniff and slobber over all the creations.