Gorgeous Emma and her Fancy Toes

Emma left us over a week ago now. I still get teary eyed whenever I think of her and I have been hiding from my blog because I don't feel like I have anything to say that would do her justice.

(This picture was during the summer when it was so hot no one could move. I found her curled up in Bob suit case and I imagined her saying 'that's it, I can't take this heat another minute! I'm out of here!')

Her final hours were not fun and I sat vigil for most of the night. She could no longer walk and would fall out of her bed and make to go somewhere. I finally figured out that maybe she wanted the litter box so I held her up and held her tail - for the tiniest pin drop of urine but it turns out she settled down after that. She lay on her side with her feet spread out in front and in back. She looked like she normally did when she was lazing the day away but I still cried and murmured to her for hours.

I was stunned and so touched when near the end I quietly told her how beautiful her toes were. She was vain about that. I swear I don't know how she could tell someone was talking about her toes but the minute you did she would spread her toes wide and flash her paws at you. For hours she hadn't had the strength to do much but the minute I told her how gorgeous her toes were she threw her front paw out as if to say 'you know it!'.

Emma was the baby of the family for 15 years. I still can't believe how much time has passed and yet, we can mark it with the loss of a large part of our nuclear family (Bob and I got married and I inherited 2 large dogs and 3 cats.) I miss the craziness of the house, the silly things that happen when you turn your head for a minute. So not only am I mourning the loss of Emma, I'm mourning the loss of Rocky, Cody, Bunny, Winston and Amber all over again.

Emma was a diva.

There's no way around it. The world revolved around her or things were going to get 'poopy' in a very literal sense. When she needed pampering she would find Amber and get her to bathe her until just that point where Em decided that was plenty, thank you very much, and she head butted Amber. We had to feel for Amber. A love session never ended in a relaxing nap. Nope, Amber would have to play her way out of the situation.

And Emma was not a 'dog person'. Or those beasts from the bowels of hell as I'm sure she was want to call Rocky and Cody. Poor Em if she happened to be between the dogs and the back door where their food was waiting. I saw Em get flattened a few times and for the vain one she was, that could not go unpunished. Too bad it was Bob and I that got the punishment but Em was not going to deal with any mutt.

In the early years I remember that Amber would head to bed with Bob while Emma would get up on the back of the couch and put her paw on my shoulder while I watched TV. Just a soft purring in my ear. When we moved the TV to the basement I lost that little delight as I said dogs were not to be tolerated.

That said, the day Rocky died Emma went down to the basement in our new house and touched her nose to his. Rocky was so out of it he didn't know but Bob and I cried to see her come and say good-bye. How she knew was beyond us.

I guess I think of Emma as a refined woman, dressed to the nines in jewels and fur who looks like she doesn't have a care in the world but deep down she has a heart of gold.

I miss her.