Man's Best Friend

Dogs are know as mans best friend for a very good reason. Everyone who has had the blessing of a dog in their life, knows why that is true. Most dogs are mans best friend....and then there is Artemis. I call her my baby, Mai calls her the royal dog (because every princess has to have a royal dog to dress up), my nieces and nephews call her Ardo. What ever she is called, she is loved.

Ten years ago (almost exactly), I was struggling in my life, trying to figure out the transition between being a teenager and becoming an adult. My little sister Sarah was struggling with going from a full house of siblings to basically just her and my parents. She really needed a friend and she was able to adopt a dog a friend of hers found. My parents kept her for a "trial period" of two weeks. Well, life being life, she was in heat during that trial period and ended up getting pregnant. Two months later she was really having a hard time delivering the puppies. She was in intense labor all day and finally just kinda gave up and laid there. I remember my dad saying she needed help, so I helped. I pulled out the first puppy, who , unfortunately, had gotten stuck in the birth canal and was dead but was causing the problems. Poor Dixie was so tired she could not deliver the rest of the puppies with out help so I helped her deliver the other ten puppies.

We rocked and cradled all those puppies everyday. I remember more than once coming home to my mom sitting in the rocking chair with 2 or 3 puppies in her arms rocking and singing to them! We ended up being able to give away most of the puppies but we were having a hard time with one in particular because she was so bad! I convinced my oldest sister Rhonda, who I was living with in Logan at the time, that I HAD TO HAVE THIS DOG!! I had always wanted to name my dog Artemis after my favorite Greecien Goddess the Goddess of the Hunt. So Artemis became part of my life. I brought her up to Logan with me and would spend all my time with her. I would take all my breaks at work together so I would have time to come home and take her out. Rhonda took her running everyday and would also come home on the lunch break to let Artemis out. After I lived in Logan, I moved in with my friend Ruth, who had two dogs, and our life revolved around our dogs. We let them sleep with us every night and took them roller blading everyday.

Brent and I got married just after Artemis turned 1 and I think he was a little worried about his crazy wife who was obsessed with her dog. :) But he too soon realized why I loved her so much. A few months later, we moved to Arizona for a few months and Artemis keep me company during that lonely time. She was always there to love me and comfort me. I seriously don't know how I would have gotten through these past ten years with out her. I know a lot of people thought I had lost it because I felt like she was my child. But it was because she loved me that much!

After my divorce, I was a brand new mom and living with my parents. They were so understanding and knew that I could not live with out my Artemis, so they let her become a part of our family life there. She let Maibel crawl all over her and pull her tail. She was so patient with us all. When my dad got sick, she was there to listen to me cry. She would sleep next to my dads chair all day by the fire. I hope she was a comfort to him in his final days on this earth. Then I had to move out and leave my Artemis. It was SO HARD!! I had never lived away from home with out her. Luckily I was close and was able to see her daily and have her come stay with me. When my dad passed away, I found comfort that my mom wasn't alone in the house because Artemis was there. My mom was able to take Artemis everyday on walks and she was able to be loved by Artemis how I was loved by Artemis. All the grandkids have come to love her too. She watches over them and lets them love on her. When Brent and I got remarried he was able to be a part of her life again and she loves him as is he has never been away.

Last week my mom and I took Artemis to the vet because she just hasn't been doing good. We found out she has a brain tumor and will not live more than a few weeks. I have literally been just sick these past few days. I have had a hard time eating, sleeping, or even functioning knowing that she would not be with us much longer. The love that she has given to those in her life is incomprehensible. The love she has given me is even more than that. I do not know how I would have gotten through some of the times in my life with out her. She has been an angel sent straight to me to help me along. I was there when she took her first breath in this life and I hope I will be there when she takes her last. I know my life will have to go on without her but I can't lie, it will be hard. I am just so grateful I was able to have her in my life for ten years. She is such a great example of love and forgiveness. My mom keeps reminding me of a song we used to sing in joyschool when we were little. I can't remember the exact words but it is about all the things animals do for us- Cows give us milk, chickens give us eggs, and dogs give us love. Artemis has fulfilled her job of giving us all love!