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Aullido's Howl

The Fierce Guardian of My Heart

Determined, stubborn.
Always taking on life head first
A fierce beast by looks, such deceiving looks
but with a charm that melted hearts.

You were great amongst hunters,
as you managed to trap my heart
with just one look.

My fearless guardian:
Watch over me, be vigilant.
You took a huge chunk of my heart with you,
for now, it's yours to keep,
until we meet again and your presence
puts it back in its place.

Guard it as well as you once guarded me.
I love you
and I always will.
Mom

A farewell for Aullido

To all our friends,

I'm Aullido's dad, with some bad news about our beloved, furry friend, this is a long entry so I hope you'll bear with me.

Aullido passed away unexpectedly, suddenly, yesterday, December the 14th.

This comes less than a month after Bela's death. We're still coming to grips with Bela's absence, so it seems especially cruel that fate took Aullido away from us so soon.

Aullido, no doubt, had a difficult life. He lost his original family and wandered the streets trying to survive. He was lucky enough to come across a kind soul who rescued him and found him a new home with us.

When his adoptive Mom met him, she was instantly lovestruck by Aullido's large, deep, sad eyes. He came to live with us and upon arriving, his gaze was empty and defeated. We showed him he would be safe and loved with us and, little by little, he got his strength, confidence and will to live back. He turned into a caring companion, a best friend, a fearless guardian, and also a dorky and playful child. He craved human company and would often get close to people and ask to be petted. A huge, hairy beast at first sight, he never failed to melt people's hearts when he got close and showed his sweet nature.

Aullido got diagnosed with cancer in September, after barely two years of living with us. We were sad beyond words; to think that this noble, protective creature would surely die, betrayed by his own body, brought ache to our hearts. For months we struggled both with Aullido's controlled, but latent cancer, and Bela's decline and death. We thought our next battle would be with Aullido's cancer. It turns out, we were wrong.

A couple of days ago, Aullido started vomiting uncontrollably. He was admitted to the hospital for rehydration and diagnosis. Two days later, while awaiting some tests, I was with him and petting him, scratching his huge, furry head and telling him how much we missed him being home, and how we would take care of him should he need some surgery. Suddenly, he went into shock. He was rushed into the OR, and underwent emergency surgery which found and removed a cleaning rag Aullido had swallowed. We never realized he'd done this. While the doctors managed to repair his stomach and intestines, the stress of the shock and lack of blood circulation proved too much for even this incredibly strong, tough boy. Aullido never recovered from anesthesia and went into cardiac arrest, all attempts to revive him failed. He died less than two days after first exhibiting any symptoms.

To say we're devastated is an understatement. We still can't believe our beloved Aullido is gone; the suddenness of his departure has left us in a state of shock, interrupted only by our tears when his absence strikes us, when something brings to us the reality that he is no longer with us.

Aullido was our first adopted dog. He showed us endless gratitude, fierce loyalty, and boundless love. This is what we learned from him; that even a lost, broken dog is capable of bouncing back, and giving you all his heart if you only open yours to him. Although 2 years was too short a time, we will forever cherish the memory of his presence in our lives.

I remember when Aullido's mom & I first started discussing adopting him, helping him find a new home. In the end we decided to bring him home. Adjusting took a lot of effort on our part (as well, for Tallulah and Bela). In the end we all adjusted and had some great times together. Now that he's gone, mom put into words the thought that was in our minds and our hearts: The hard part wasn't letting him into our lives. The hardest part was letting him go.

To all our Dogster friends, thanks for your support in these difficult and trying times for us. Love and best wishes from Mom, Dad and Tallulah.

Here to help my humans!

Hey all! I haven't been here for quite a while! I was busy supporting my humans because they've had a hard past few weeks. After my surgery I recovered fine, I can now go out for walks, climb the stairs and I'm basically back to normal.

However, right after I got well, Bela got really sick. It's like she was waiting for me to get better so she could have the humans' attention!

Anyway she had some serious problems, had surgery, and spent a few days at home under treatment, while Tallulah and I just watched, and gave our humans a lot of love. They seemed to need it; they were really sad.

Bela died today, November 15th; and we're all very sad. I didn't know her for that long, but I appreciated her. Mom, dad & Tallulah were extremely sad; so I guess the best I can do is be with them and give them all my love. Mom, Dad, remember that we're in this together and here to help each other; Humans and doggies can help with different things. I'll be here for you whenever you need me.

I'm also restarting my chemotherapy tomorrow, so I'll keep you posted on how I'm doing! I know that my humans will help me through this, like they did last month, and like they did for Bela until the very end. With humans like these, it's no wonder we give them our all!

See ya!