sometimes i think rescue has a trickster pulling the strings

when riley and capone came in we all thought, hmmm..palliative..just a few weeks. then we put them on a shit load of meds (28 pills per day each cuz they were so freaking big!) and poof..before us were suddenly seemingly healthy giant old dogs. so ok...readjust our thinking to not so palliative..might be here for a few more years. we cruise thru the next few months without any worries about them and then riley for no apparent reason starts going down hill and boom... we are again looking at the end of his life soon.

its like this little trickster lets us start to think we can win and then pulls the rug out from under all of us again.

whatever.

the problem is we never really know if we are going to win or lose. should we take those few more steps forward, or should we stop and let them go? when it works out ok..at least for a while..we feel pretty good. when it doesn't and we should have called it quits a few decisions ago..we feel like shit.

with riley and capone, I know we did ok. riley felt pretty good for a few months, he got to stare at cats just barely beyond his reach for long wishful moments, had lots of walks, hugs, kisses, good food, soft beds, and treats. and of course capone is still doing well..he has some spark in his heart to keep him chugging along for a while yet.

the best thing that ever happened to these big old dogs was their seizure from a neglectful owner and the chance to have a better life. maybe they did not get a real "dreams can come true" home but they had a lot of people both at the spca and at saints who loved them and cared that they had a good life. and that was most definitely greatly better than what they previously had.

capone is a bit of a silly hearted goof. he likes to play with toys sometimes and he likes to play with june too.

riley was a more serious guy, his past woes hung heavy on his soul. but the one thing I am sure of is riley was grateful. maybe he knew all along that his life was nearing the end but I know he felt the daily comfort of feeling loved and cared for right til the end.

in some respects it sucks that dogs need to be rescued but for those that do...rescue can mean the difference between just memories of hardship and neglect or memories of kind people holding them in their arms and saying I love you.

on behalf of riley who did have a voice at the end...tricksters not withstanding...thank you so much to every single person who loved and cared about him and gave him that second chance.