Portraits of a Very Good Dog

Cocoa’s death feels like the end of an era. I did not know how much a person can love a dog and I never had one from scratch before.

Cocoa came to us in 2010 as a tiny, 4-pound-pup, the runt of the litter with a tail as long as her body. It feels like we’ve closed the chapter on childhood, that childhood we made for our kids. The one where you try to give the kids everything you didn’t have. To be fair, I had a good dog growing up, but he is from another story and a different childhood.

That first day at the foster home, Kevin looked small puppy Cocoa in the eyes, with her petite paws and tiny body, and said, “I’ll only take you home if you grow.” And grow she did, from 4 pounds to 65. She ended up a respectable size, a dog that he could be seen in public with, one that didn’t question his manhood.

I carried her in my purse for quite some time, sneaking her into stores and restaurants. The vet had predicted she would only reach 25 pounds max! I gave her protein shakes after Kevin would take her on those long runs, I was so worried about her.

This dog, with shepherding instincts, became NANNY dog. She herded the kids by their sweatshirts, and saved babies from falling, more than once! She did not seem phased when baby Regina appeared and within a few hours started crawling so she could GET THAT DOG. Cocoa played dress up with the kids, hide and seek with the baby, and frisbee with Dad.

Cocoa welcomed her wayward little cousin dog Sterling reluctantly, but taught him HOW TO BE A DOG. She tutored him in Sniffing and Barking, Stealing Toys, and Getting Treats from the Neighbor. Our rescue dog rescued a dog.

As I waited for the vet to come to the house, I cradled her head and told her it would be okay. We didn’t want her to suffer anymore. She died peacefully at home surrounded by her pack. I’m so grateful for all she did for us, and to have had the loveliest dog ever, 15/10 on the #weratedogs scale.