07/16/2026
I shared a while ago that Shadow and I were taking some time together. I never imagined that our time would end so soon.
Last week, we said goodbye to Shadow after 16 beautiful years together.
Shadow wasn’t “just a dog.” He was my brother. We grew up side by side. He was there through childhood, heartbreak, celebrations, and some of the hardest moments of my life. There almost hasn’t been a version of me that didn’t include him. To lose him feels like losing a piece of myself.
Over the last few months, we faced countless vet visits, medications, sleepless nights, and difficult decisions. Looking back, there are things I wish I had known sooner. There are questions I’ll probably carry with me forever. One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned through all of this is to advocate for your pets fiercely. Ask questions. Do your research. Seek second opinions. Trust your instincts and make the best decision you can with the information you have, even when it feels difficult or goes against what others may recommend.
I spent so much time worrying about his quality of life, that I was too focused on the present. Then someone shared these words with me about their dog that recently passed:
“I was so worried about her decline, and so absorbed in my duties to her, that I had separated the full life she lived before with this feeling of failure. I measured our relationship more by the last chapter than I did the fullness of her story. And, realizing that, found some peace.”
Those words changed something in me.
Shadow’s story was not defined by his last days. It was defined by 16+ years of unconditional love, tiny paws following me around the house, begging for snacks, naps beside me, and a bond that can never be replaced.
The love I have for him runs deeper than I can put into words, and I have never known grief like this. But if love could have saved him, he would have lived forever.
Thank you, Shadow, for being with our family and for spending your entire life with us. Thank you for growing up with me, for loving me through every version of myself, and for teaching me what unconditional love truly looks like.
Until we meet again, my sweet boy🖤
