Justin & I have been friends for over 15 years. 10 years ago I went to visit him so I could support him at his mother's funeral. I will never forget walking up to his house. I almost turn around and got back into my car when I saw CLO-E. I have always been scared of dogs and she was this strong, muscular pit bull.
At that time, she really was like Justin's girlfriend. She slept in his bed and she was always by his side. I think when we first started dating, she thought she was going to like me. That was until I was attacked by fleas and she was kicked out of the bed.
Over the yeas, she and I had an interesting relationship. Not only was I scared of dogs, but I never really liked them. And she drove me crazy. Having to pick-up her poop in our first apartment was horrific for me. I really think she did it to annoy me. We used to joke that she had lived so long just to spite me. But the bad part about that is that it seemed as if she was invincible and that she would never die.
Because of CLO-E, it was hard to find a place to live. It meant I had to pay a larger deposit and possibly more rent. And then there was the time she jumped off the balcony and broke her two front legs. With Justin on crutches from knee surgery I really didn't know how we were going to survive. But we did.
In college, I did a report on whether pit bulls should be banned from Contra Costa County and I learned so much. I learned that they are less likely to bite than a Golden Retriever, which really surprised me. It is still so crazy to me, how people could think my laid back and lazy dog could be dangerous. I am not crazy, I know anything is possible. But it would be nice if people wouldn't always judge her.
When Paige was born, people were of course concerned- but CLO-E had always been great with Paige. Paige sits on her, pulls things she shouldn't and screams so much. But CLO-E never even flinched.
But after almost 17 years of life, we had to put CLO-E down last week. It was a lot harder than I ever would have imagined. I knew it would be tough for Justin, but never imagined it would be tough for me. The good news is that Paige has such a great view of heaven (You know with Jesus and the dinosaurs you can ride on) so she is handling this very well. She always considered CLO-E her "little sister" so she does miss her, but she really just wants to know when we are going to get a new pet. And for those of you who are wondering that yourself: That will be a while down the road- when we own our own house.
Paige walking Clo-e for the first time.
Justin & Clo-e recovering together
