We love you, Riley!

Last night after we brought Riley back home after his appointment, we wanted to make sure he enjoyed his last night. So we spent some time outside, played string, and had lots and lots of window time and petting! We didn't do any force feedings last night - we wanted his last few hours to be enjoyable for him, not torture. He even purred - a LOT - last night when we were petting him. It was so nice to hear and to know he was happy.

This morning, I got up early so we could spend just a few more hours together. There was lots of petting again and of course the cheek rubbing. ;-)

And then the strangest thing happened. This morning, we still had the carrier out out and open from the night before. Usually, for obvious reasons, he hates that thing and we have to fight him to get into it. Well, about 10 minutes before we had to leave, Riley comes out of the bedroom, drinks some water, and then just walks right into his carrier and lays down. It was so strange - like he knew what was going on and had accepted it. Or at least that's what we like to think.

The office was really busy since it was a Saturday morning (including a huge, beautiful Great Dane!) so it took a while to get into the room. But once we got in, we had to fill out the necessary paperwork including what we wanted to do with his remains. We chose cremation and to get his ashes back, which we'll get in about a week from Tuesday.

They explained the process and it went very smoothly and peacefully. Basically, they gave him a shot that puts him to sleep, but still breathing, even though his eyes stay open. It took affect pretty quickly and we just kept petting him and talking to him as best we could through fighting back the tears. And then once he's asleep, they shave his leg and inject the final injection that officially stops his heart. That part happens so fast it was pretty amazing - and i'm so thankful that he just kept "sleeping". I know sometimes there are "side effects" to it and I'm thankful he just kept laying there. It was almost like he was just napping and that made it easier to see.

DH and I, of course, were both crying - and believe it or not, the vet actually was tearing up at the end as well when she gave me the hug. Riley had become quite popular there due to all of his visits and grew on everyone, so it made me happy that he had touched their lives as well.

So now DH and I are just kind of hanging out around the house - watching TV, napping, etc... to get our mind off of it. We haven't put his things away yet - we couldn't. But know we will neeed to, soon. And tonight, we are going to a BBQ at a friends' house to get us out of the house.

Thank you all for your thoughts and wishes - both on here and on the Nest. It really means a lot. And to leave you, I'm going to re-link to one of my old posts with some of our favorite pictures of Riley.

http://tinyurl.com/5jxdxp


Riley - Mommy and Daddy will miss you and love you always - you were a huge part of our family and always will be. Now you can play with as much string, nap, and chase as many animals as you want - MUAH!