Our Last Goodbye to Gizmo

[Gabriel]

I'm sorry for your loss. The director of the rescue whom we got Gizmo through told us today that two of their other adopted dogs died this week too. A lot of sadness going around. :-(

Sad for us but they sure are happy to be free from the pain of the physical body - even so I bet they miss us just as much as we do them

[MiamiThom]

What a beautiful tribute and thank you for sharing that. My thoughts go out to you and to all the others who have lost their pets recently (as stated in the thread). Breaks my heart ... Thoughts are with you all.

[apollo6]

There are no words I can say that will comfort you. God gives us these little angel on loan. And Gizmo will always be in your heart and soul because he was loved. May he know rest in peace.
Sonja,Angel Apollo

[Allison]

Oh Allison, what a sweet and tender tribute. Thank you, and please thank your husband so much, for honoring and sharing Gizmo with us in this way.

You and your husband and Gizmo are forever part of our family now. We will always be here to greet you, and we will always love to share in any more memories or stories about your lives together.

Always in loving memory of your precious little boy Gizmo ~
Marianne

Thank you for honoring our Gizmo in the K9 Cushings family. I still have not been able to write anything about Gizmo, except to add to my husband's thoughts. In his healthier years, Gizmo brought a wonderful chaos to our lives that is missed.

This past spring, although Gizmo had lost his ability to walk, I suggested a trip to the park. In our three years with him, winter always seemed to take its toll on Gizmo. I thought perhaps the fresh air would do him good.

So, my husband and I took our two dogs for a stroll. Although Gizmo mostly rode in the stroller, we did take him out for short bouts to sit on the grass. Gizmo always loved the fresh air.

We tried to take the dogs for ice-cream but struggled to find a place open that served it. Finally, we did it, but had to eat the ice-cream inside our car. Nonetheless, the dogs seemed to like licking our fingers and cones.

That's the last time we got to treat Gizmo. After that, his pancreatisis attacks became so regular, we had to stick to a restricted diet. I treasure that spring memory.

[Allison]

What wonderful tribute to your Gizmo!!! Thank you so much sharing this. I second what Marianne said you, your husband and Gizmo are our forever family here.

Please do stay with us.
Terry

I appreciate being invited to post a photo, tribute, and memories of Gizmo. There are members who have been for so much longer than me. I started posting when it was essentially too late for us to help Gizmo further, but I'm grateful for all the condolences. Thank you everyone and I do plan to stay.

[Allison]

My comforting thoughts go out to you and your husband, Allison….and Gizmo of course!

Thank you for the comforting thoughts. The daughter of the lady who first owned Gizmo came to see Gizmo as he started to decline. When I let her know the news that Gizmo had died, she reassured us it was time. Now Gizmo is with her mom and dad.

Gizmo was such a fighter. The vet staff, as well as my husband and I, would always joke he'd outlive all of us. In the end, despite many good vital signs, Gizmo's body wore out. When we lost him, he seemed at peace.

[Allison]

What a wonderful tribute to Gizmo. He was loved and he found a happy home and he got the perfect good bye the first time.
The last goodbye is always so heart breaking. We just miss them so much, their larger than life personalities leave a huge hole in our hearts.

At the time when we decided to foster Gizmo, we felt he added a welcome chaos to our lives. Our other two pets were fairly docile and quiet. Gizmo was a bundle of energy, which actually made him more difficult to adopt. Fosters tended to be older, but then would find him too rambuctious to handle. Gizmo loved to trail after my husband, hide his bones, whine when left alone. He was annoying but also endearing, which made us fall for him. In so many ways, he made his presence know. Yes, we miss his larger-than-life personality.

[Allison]

What a beautiful tribute and thank you for sharing that. My thoughts go out to you and to all the others who have lost their pets recently (as stated in the thread). Breaks my heart ... Thoughts are with you all.

Grief never seems to effect us in the same ways. When I lost my Lucy cat of eight years, all I wanted to do was talk, talk, talk about her. With Gizmo, I feel different. Whenever I start to talk about him, it's like testing a bandaged wound. I keep lifting up the bandage, only to find it still hurts.

On the flip side, I also only seemed to want to talk about Lucy's death. I felt unbearable pain when I recalled any good memories. With Gizmo, although I don't talk much about him, it helps so much to remember all the good times. The last few months there weren't many, but we did have years of his being a quirky and lovable addition to our family, and this is good.

[Allison]

There are no words I can say that will comfort you. God gives us these little angel on loan. And Gizmo will always be in your heart and soul because he was loved. May he know rest in peace.
Sonja,Angel Apollo

Yes, I do Gizmo was a little angel on loan. In so many ways, the timing was right for him to be with my husband and I. This is part of what gives me comfort. We were there when he needed a family.

The summer we decided to become long-term fosters, Gizmo injured his back. I remember praying that God would heal him and let Gizmo have months of normal living as our dog. God gave Gizmo an entire extra year of health. What a wonderful gift. It hurts that we also had to see him die, but Gizmo was meant to be with us--and that eases our grief.

[Allison]

In the summer, my husband and I always visit my family in Canada. This year, our plans were up in the air, because we weren't certain of Gizmo's health. When we lost Gizmo, we decided to go ahead with our trip.

Before we left, we gathered all of Gizmo's stuff together but didn't have the heart to deal with it. We'll head back home soon and I'm not really looking forward to putting it away.

Also, I keep thinking about how every morning when he wasn't doing well, I'd get up to take him outside and then sit for a time with him just to keep him company. The house and my mornings will feel empty.

Thank you to everyone for making Gizmo and my family part of your lives. We also have a senior poodle, a wild tortoiseshell cat, and a foster feral. Gizmo will be missed, but we're also looking forward to spoiling the rest of our pets. Hugs to everyone!