Memorials

McCain aka “Dookie”

In loving memory of McCain, our sweetest boy, who we had to say goodbye to this week. We adopted him from Heart of the Valley nearly four years ago when he was 11 years old and battling chronic illness. We knew he hadn’t had an easy life and had been in and out of shelters. From the moment he entered our lives, we promised to give him the love and care he deserved for as long as he needed. McCain quickly became the heart of our home, with his endless need for cuddles and his lovable quirks. We miss everything about him–the nick in his ear, his crooked toenails, his toothless mouth, and his absolute love of playing with strings. His gentle, affectionate nature filled every corner of our lives, and we are heartbroken by his absence. Though he is no longer with us, we are so grateful for the time we had together and the joy he brought to our lives.

Rest easy, sweet Dookie. You were truly one of a kind and we’ll miss you everyday.

Love, Behnaz and Josh

Our sweetest boy Rollie, went to heaven on 7/19/2024, it is still a heartbreaking reality. Our little guy had a very long life and will be missed the rest of our lives. He would have been 16.5 years on 7/26/24, but he didn’t make it. What did happen is a life of love, happiness and joy every day of his life. We feel he was one in a million, someday if we see eyes in another soul, we will know Rollie has made his way back to us in a new way. Until that day we grieve a precious life now gone, we are grateful for all the things he taught us and so much love from a tiny little boy a gift we hold in our hearts. Have fun, Rollie with your sister Aspen who we lost way too young. We love you both more than life.

After at least 23 years in this lifetime, Ruth passed with ease and grace on June 25th, 2024. She was a wise warrior and a grateful old soul who knew she was well loved. If her pumpkin seeds were missing from her morning’s supplement bowl, she would bray and storm around the stall until she got exactly what she wanted. Her latest x-rays proved that Ruth’s deteriorating foot problems were bad, but worse were her pastern bone joints. They were misaligned in addition to being worn down to bone on bone. Our decision was clearly to end her pain without prolonging her suffering.

We will miss her and those champion ears forever.

Ace was the love of my life. He found me in 2012 and walked with me through all of my twenties. We moved through multiple states, met my husband together, and he even helped walk me down the aisle at my wedding. There were very few people he didn’t consider a friend and if you had an open lap, you better believe he would plop himself in it and nudge you until you pet him endlessly. He had a big, sassy personality and he was the bravest golden I’ve ever met. He knew when to make you laugh and how to cuddle up just right when you needed to cry into his soft coat. I will forever miss you and I love you the biggest, Ace Face.

He was an old soul, gentle, and goofy as heck. He made us laugh every day with his attitude, speed noodle comedy routines, and scared/amazed us with his insane prey drive. Like that one time he caught a bird out of the air. He would howl at any musical noise/siren/instrument which was very fun in our musical household. Sometimes it was annoying and now it feels empty without his input. We loved him so much and lost him far too soon.

Gio was my soulmate pup who had essentially grown up with me – adopted him when I was 19 and from there he was with me through all those formative years. We moved I think 7 total times in the years we were together, he’d been with me through a few relationships, and was my closest company during some of the hardest and also the happiest times of my life. Losing him felt like losing a son or a brother, we were that intertwined. We explored Agility together, he had the cutest tricks like Sit Pretty and he would even backflip for a ball. He crooned when he would get excited (he was half beagle half Italian greyhound) and sometimes one ear would be up & the other down, making him look very 50/50 of each. He was hilarious, and naughty, and loving, and my children speak of him often.

She had the biggest heart & such poise! Loved going camping!

She was “my little girl” for 15 glorious years. She had such a personality, and would “talk” to everyone she knew…such a sweet girl. She struggled to walk and even stand in her final days, and became frustrated and unhappy, as she couldn’t understand what had happened to her once untiring body, and old age finally caught up with her. Putting her down was the hardest thing I had ever done, because she was still as sharp as a tack, but she told me it was time and that it would be okay to let her go. I miss her so much it hurts. But I will get another dog when I’m ready, and look forward to new adventures, even though NOTHING will ever replace Flurfy. Her name comes from “a furious flurry of fluffy flakes”, born in Big Sky, MT on Columbus Day, October 13th, 2008.

Wayne came to us completely unexpectedly. My kids & I were going thru a lot at the time .. and honestly, people thought I was crazy for deciding to bring home a bearded dragon in need, with all that we had going on. I thought I was crazy too! Being a single mom of three, not to mention having zero experience with bearded dragons .. I’d never even had a reptile. None the less, we knew Wayne needed us. Turned out .. Wayne came to us right when we didn’t know we needed him. 💗 Countless hours I spent researching how to properly care for him. I learned new things all the time. I’ll never forget seeing that glimmer of wonder in my kids eyes as they watched me feed him live bugs for the first time, going on all those drives on the back roads with my kids to purchase crickets, his first bath, the kids searching for dandelions for him to eat. He bonded with my daughter immediately. He would snuggle into her chest and close his eyes. We could tell he was different than other bearded dragons. We could also tell, he wasn’t completely healthy … we knew he was sick. Looking back now, at the last year of his life .. it truly brings me to tears. He really perked up that last year, it’s like he knew this was it so he better live it up. We completely re-did his entire terrarium. We would try new foods with him, and we all laughed as he tried sweet potato puree for the first time. His mouth was covered in baby food and I swear he was smiling ear to ear. He loved taking baths. Looking back on it I realize, caring for him was healing me. Waynard, thanks for the adventure, the laughs and the tears. Thanks for being such a trooper. I am so glad we got the privilege of loving you the last few years of your life … 💗 We will never forget you. Fly high, bud 🥹🥹🥹

Millie was a pony who came to our rescue from an owner surrender. When we went to pick her up, we could tell she was worse than we were told. We had the vet out in the following days, and she had severe laminitis. We tried everything to keep her maintained, some worked for a while then not, until we had to love her enough to let her go from the pain. Millie was around 8 years old and was a feisty at feed time, the girl loved her meals:-) Millie loved our volunteers to brush her and of course get some treats (sugar free). So, fly high Millie the Pill and go run without pain with others that we have lost and of course Mom/Grandma will be waiting for you with open arms.