Yearly Appreciation

 It's been 3 years since Marshall the cocker left us.

We still think of him all the time.

You can't be with someone every day for 13 years and not have an attachment.

He was named after the famous black amplifier stacks you see behind a ton of musicians. 

He walked in the house, jumped on the couch, and was ours. Someone had abused him but he had an incredible life with us. Sometimes he'd come to work to pick me up. One day my boss grabbed his leash and took him around, introducing him. It was delightfully surreal. He had lots of fans.

He loved his house and family, slept in the bed, and was almost physically attached to his mommy. He sometimes slept like a parachute over her head, on the pillow. Like all cockers, he was nuts and had abandonment issues. Like his parents, he had his own style. Every night we had our 'routine'. In bed, he'd come up to me, I'd scratch his ears for a bit, then he'd go to sleep.

He was very fond of Dunkin coffee and figured out how to get the lid off the styro cups. This was somewhat frustrating while driving because you'd put the lid on, hit the gas, and he'd take it off. This would go on until the cup was hidden or he finished it. It never affected him.

One day he paid a visit to a psych ward. The change in the entire ward was stunning. People with serious problems came running to pet and sit with him. Everything quieted down.

He had aunties online, including one from Canada. She wanted nothing more than to come to the US and take him for a walk.

Like all of our pets, he followed his mommy around. If she had a bad day and had to be in bed all day, Marshall was in bed all day. I didn't take it personally. She's the cocker whisperer. All of our dogs are like this.

He had a brother, in the form of a cat. I thought he didn't care, but it turns out he did. When his cat died, he went into mourning. It was so sad.  

Shortly after, he was diagnosed with cancer and given 6 months. We got him all sorts of non-invasive and not painful treatment. He got acupuncture, which he was good with. He stayed with us for another 2 years. He was never in any pain - that was the main criterion.  He was a celebrity at the vet's office.

The world seemed to stop when he did.

We were stunned when the vet made a donation in his name to the UofP Vet Center, the vet hospital in Philly.

He resides in an honored place, where he can watch over the house.

It's not enough.