Dog of a Lifetime

About a year ago, we decided there’d be no more stairs. I carried her from floor to floor, in and out of cars, and onto sofas and chairs like a stiff-legged suitcase. I would’ve done it forever. Looking now at old photos, I’d forgotten all the changes. I never expected to have such an old dog. I never expected her to be old for so much of her life. She got used to the diminishment of her senses. She was a friend to my son, long into the years he’ll remember. Heidi and the author in 2010 Heidi was an athlete. She’d play fetch along the side of a mountain for hours. That was my attempt to exhaust her enough that her separation anxiety and boiling-hot prey drive wouldn’t be so bad. It didn’t work, but it was fun. Heidi was an explorer. I didn’t worry about letting her off leash. She ran ahead, but always looked back. I took her everywhere. I don’t remember all the places she’s been. In my recent photo trawl, picking a random spot on the calendar, I found her standing in front of the…