Goodbye to "little bro"

Thirteen years ago we brought a little Shih Tzu into our home to give our son (who was also fairly young at that point) some lively household company. He was soon called "little bro" by his smitten other brother who named him after Nick Faldo the golfer . We were all equally smitten and Faldo was a huge part of our small family. He loved Austin's friends and the pizza that came with them, his favorite treat. In his younger years, he would stay up into the wee hours with all the boys and then slink down and jump into our sleeping bed as if he hadn't just been partying and eating pizza all night long.


Though I was Alpha mom, Faldo had a real soft spot for his bigger "bro". "Give me a kiss" would result in Faldo giving Austin a nose lick, this honour was reserved for Austin and Austin only. We could ask all day and nothing, like he didn't even know what we meant. He may have given kisses to his brother but he was never more than a foot from me at any given time (unless I was working and even then he would wait at the stair landing where he could see or hear me working). When he left peacefully today surrounded by our presence and our immense love, it was with such mixed feelings. We were honouring our pet by ending his suffering but at a loss on how to fill that space in our heart and home. It can't be done......he was simply the most loving and personable dog ever. I wanted you to meet him especially today. We miss him like crazy.


Photos by Sande Chase