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You are here: Home / Pet Blogging / Dog Blogging / Back in the Saddle

Back in the Saddle

by | 54 Comments

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Where she belongs. Always.

Apparently after my earlier post I just decompressed, because I went to take a quick nap (with Lily, of course), and I woke up three hours later. I fell asleep with my hand on her belly, just feeling it rise and fall, and when I woke up, it was still there.

Let’s send some kind thoughts and love Miss Bianca’s way, as her beloved Stella passed.

Reader Interactions

54Comments

  7. 7.

    satby

    Was late to the other thread, so again, deepest condolences Miss Bianca. You gave Stella a lifetime of love, the best gift a dog could ever have.

  9. 9.

    sfinny

    So sorry about Stella and happy about Lily being home. Pets are such a rollercoaster sometimes.

  10. 10.

    Libraryguy

    So sorry to hear about Stella, Miss Bianca. Thinking warm thoughts and hugs to you and your family.

  12. 12.

    Mary G

    Light and love to Miss Bianca for the loss of Stella, and happy to see Lily home again. All the pictures of her today are a treat.

  15. 15.

    Cckids

    Miss Bianca, my heart goes out to you. What a lovely place Stella is resting in, though! May you come to find peace as well.

  16. 16.

    Damned at Random

    Miss Bianca- So sorry about Stella. I’ve lost so many pets (and so many people) and it doesn’t get easier. In time, when you are receptive again, you might find a new companion with something of Stella’s spirit to love. Best wishes until then

  17. 17.

    HRA

    My sincere condolences to you Miss Bianca on the loss of Stella.

    Lily is really home now!
    Hope

  18. 18.

    Amir Khalid

    Miss Bianca, condolences over Stella’s passing. I know you’ll always cherish her memory.

    Great to see Lily home again and feeling well.

  21. 21.

    Bruuuuce

    So sorry, Miss Bianca. I’m sure she was well loved, and vice versa.

    As for Lily, very glad to see her in her Only Home, with her family, where she should be, and feeling, if not healthy, much better. You go, Cole and Lily!

  23. 23.

    (Temporarily) Temporarily Max McGee

    Okay, something inside those parentheses is tripping the spam trap. Three times in a row means a quick name change.

  24. 24.

    SectionH

    Wonderful to see Lily close to your hand, and can’t help it but also wonderful to see Steve hanging in nearby too. TBH, all these photos are wonderful.

  25. 25.

    SectionH

    I posted condolences to Miss B downthread, but to make sure ( I was on a device that’s not working so well) I looked, and don’t see it. So just in case:

    Miss Bianca, I’m so sorry about Stella. Losing our dogs, cats, horses, rabbits – whatever “critters” we love – it hurts every damn time.

    I’m relieved that your worries about how to bury/cremate her seem to have worked out. I was crying and lol’ing at the same time when I read that post, as a good Juicer, because I’ve stuck a few cats in my freezer when it was the best option. Buried them when all due love later, but they weren’t Very Large Dogs.

  28. 28.

    SWMBO

    Condolences to Miss Bianca. Peace and comfort to you and all who loved her.

    Lily is in her happy place. So is Cole. And all’s right with the world in Bethany.

  29. 29.

    seaboogie

    So Lily is back and this is once again a pants-optional blog…these are the good old days.

  30. 30.

    CaseyL

    Miss Bianca – I’m so sorry to hear Stella has died, though you did give her a lovely final resting place.

  32. 32.

    Mohagan

    I’m so sorry about Stella, Miss Bianca. It’s always so hard to lose a beloved pet.
    And JC, thanks for the two lovely updates and great pictures of Lily. What wonderful news! She looks so happy; all’s right with the world today at least. Long may she prance!

  33. 33.

    No One You Know

    I’m so sorry for your loss, Miss Bianca.

    Really glad to hear about Lily, John. I’ve listened to my felines breathe after their surgeries.

    Our fur people leave their paw prints all over our hearts. Forever.

  35. 35.

    Kathleen

    My deepest condolences to you, Miss Bianca.

    Glad to hear all is right in your world, John G.

  37. 37.

    thalarctosMaritimus

    I’m sorry about Stella’s passing, Ms. Bianca. Your caring for her clearly comes through in your writing.

  38. 38.

    Johannes

    So happy for you and Lily, Cole. Miss Bianca, my sincere condolences on your loss. We’ve had some here, lately, and we know how much it hurts.

  39. 39.

    WaterGirl

    Of course your hand was still on her tummy, Cole. Even in your sleep, you knew you had your Lily home and needed to know she was okay.

  40. 40.

    WaterGirl

    Miss Bianca, my heart goes out to you.

    I have never gotten much comfort from wakes or funeral, but we buried our beloved dog Bear in my friend’s back yard, and it was the most comforting goodbye I have ever been part of. We all said a few words and buried her with a bloom from the beautiful hydrangea bush I had just gotten in her honor. That is the most peace I have ever experienced from a wake or burial, human or beloved pet, before or since. I hope you were able to have that, too.

  41. 41.

    Manyakitty

    Miss Bianca, I’m so sorry to hear about Stella. Sending peace and love to you and yours.

    And yay for Lily resuming her role in the Cole household! Are the other critters being nice to her? Whenever one of my cats leaves, if even for a routine vet visit, the others are MEAN. My Heisenberg kitty had to stay overnight in the hospital for a urinary blockage, and when we brought him back home, Schrodinger and Manya tormented him relentlessly. I ended up keeping him in another room until they calmed down.

  42. 42.

    WaterGirl

    @Manyakitty: I have always loved the photo – I think it was a BJ thing or an internet thing – where an injured kitty comes home from the vet and his/her brother or sister kitty puts its arm around the injured one. So sweet.

  43. 43.

    Manyakitty

    @WaterGirl: Aww…I remember that! My cats are generally loving toward one another, but something about hospital smells sets them off.

  44. 44.

    Ohio Mom

    So, so sorry, Miss Bianca — I remember that this is a challenging era overall for you and the hits keep coming. I hope you find comfort in your memories and the knowledge you made sure Stella had the peaceful passage she deserved. Sounds like she has a beautiful resting place — you did everything you could.

  45. 45.

    Nicole

    Miss Bianca, I’m so sorry. And so glad Stella was able to pass at home, safe with someone who loved her.

    The last day my horse was alive he couldn’t stand up anymore, and while we waited for the vet, he would try to sit up, until the effort got to be too much. Every time he lied back down he would adjust himself so his head was in my lap. A friend of mine, after, said, could there be anything better than to be able to leave life with our head in the lap of someone who loves us? It made me feel a lot better. They don’t experience fear of the end the way we do; they trust us to do what is best for them right up to knowing when to let them go.

    I think that’s why Cole maybe wasn’t able to make the call on Lily on Thursday- it wasn’t time. For your Stella and my Cosmo, it was, and so we were able to make the decision. When I worked at the zoo and keepers had to make the call on the elderly animals, they would always say when it was time the animal would let them know. I didn’t quite get it then, but now I do.

  46. 46.

    Miss Bianca

    hey, friends, late to this thread, but just wanted to thank the Blogfather for his shout-out, and all of you, as well. i am tearing up a little here. It’s been a year of big and rapid changes so far, and this community of jackals has helped me cope with it all. Bless you all, and lovely Lily as well!

  47. 47.

    Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho

    @Miss Bianca: I am so sorry to learn of your sad news about Stella. They leave such big paw prints on our hearts, and you’re in my thoughts. If you have time, plz shoot an email as I lost any addresses not marked as contracts in a recent tech failure.

    Cole, I’m so happy to see that photo. It was great to read Lily is home and see the ones on her ride back.

    Back to the grindstone. Have a good week, fellow jackals.

  48. 48.

    Paula

    Happy about Lily; sorry to hear about Stella. Pets always end in heartbreak but the price is worth the joy of having them.

  50. 50.

    The Moar You Know

    @Miss Bianca: I am sorry. Truly, truly sorry. Went through this back in 2014 and I still miss her.

    As circumstances do, we ended up with a moody (seriously) goth (seriously) golden retriever that is the polar opposite of our dearly departed Hannah in every way. So I’m reminded of her on a daily basis as I pray for Hannah, wherever she is, to help me with this adorable canine terrorist dog that’s ended up in our lives.

    You always miss them. My taciturn, express no emotions dad told me this recently in a conversation that left my jaw on the floor. So utterly unlike him. He used the phrase “scar on your heart that never goes away”. Man, he was dead to rights on that one. The heart is still there; it works; function not impeded. But that scar, fuck, it’s there.

    As a reminder of why dogs are awesome, Max, an ancient blue heeler, takes care of his human and saves her.

  52. 52.

    J R in WV

    And Blog Host John Cole:

    So glad for you and Lily, having some time to be together — and in spring, the best time of year evah! Enjoy the smells of blooms and new growth together!

  53. 53.

    Wanderer

    Miss Bianca: I am sorry for your loss. It is so hard to loose a beloved pet.
    Lilly: take good care of yourself and John. So glad you are home.

  54. 54.

    Garbo

    So sorry for your loss, Miss Bianca. Our pets are pure love and joy and they make our lives better in too many ways to count. Godspeed, Stella.

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