All dogs go to Heaven -- but especially Wilson.

On Monday morning, we said goodbye to our family dog, Wilson.  Last May, he was diagnosed with a tumor in his spleen.  Eleven months later -- eleven great months filled with so many family memories -- Wilson's spleen ruptured and he suffered an internal bleed his poor little body couldn't recover from.  My dad was with him when he collapsed at home and immediately rushed him to the vet, and my mom, Gavin, and I were able to spend time with him and say goodbye before we had to let him go.  It's somewhat comforting that he was surrounded with so much love in his final moments, and I know my parents held him and told him what a good puppy he was as he drifted off to sleep.

I'm crying as I write this, even four days later.  He was honestly that good a puppy.  Truly the best.

Wilson was everybody's favorite dog.  It wasn't just that he was adorable -- though he certainly was -- but more than that, he just had the sweetest personality.  He always wanted to hold hands and cuddle, and he was amazing with Gavin.  Stephen and I did our best to teach Gavin how to be gentle with animals, but he's a toddler, and sometimes his petting would get a bit...zealous, shall we say?  Wilson never seemed to mind.  Wilson was Gavin's little guardian puppy, and I'd like to think that he still is.  I hope it meant something to Wilson to see Gavin one last time and have Gavin's little toddler hands pat pat pat on his back.  It meant something to me.

My parents are amazing pet owners, and this loss has hit them very hard.  Wilson was the way Wilson was because my parents took such incredible care of him.  His demeanor was so gentle because he was given so much love and attention from the very beginning.  But there was something innately special about Wilson too -- something that set him apart from all of the other dogs our family has had over the decades.  It's something that will never be duplicated, and something that leaves us all with a hole in our hearts in his absence.

We love you so much, sweet puppy.  From the time you joined our family until the time you left us, you were as loved as any puppy could ever be.  We miss you terribly already and will always remember how much you brought to our lives in the short eight years you were here.