Yesterday Bob and I had to bid farewell to our baby boy and best friend, Vincent Lorezno, aka Bubba, Alex, Vinny, Stinky Bear… On the excellent advice of our friend Consuelo we spent the past few days celebrating his life with him. Vinny was one of the 70+ dogs we fostered through SPCA of Tompkins County. Number 16, he was the only one both Bob and I agreed we could not part with. In NY he loved hiking and swimming with his buddies Zeke, Henry, Sophie, Chloe, and especially Louie. His favorite place to visit was Ms. Lisa Colbys house where his buddy Darwin- a Great Dane and his best friend lived. Vinny also held a job while living in NY- the foster dogs bob and I took in all had “issues.” Our job was to rehabilitate and train them so they could be adopted into forever homes. Vinny did all the hard work teaching those dogs manners and how to be a “good dog.” He was a tough but patient teacher who always got results. When our family relocated to LA Vinny discovered the ocean. Although he liked to swim in the waves his favorite part was digging and digging and digging in the sand. For the past few, and last years of his life Vinny had a doggie door and could come in and out at his leisure. He loved to go out into the yard and take long naps in the sun on a spot we called “Bovine Hill” coming in for a break on the couch to cool off. He loved being sung to and his favorites were “How Much is that Doggy in the Window” and “Take Me Out to the Dog Park.” In his day Vin was a big boy, 100 lbs of muscle, I will always remember walking him and watching people who saw us coming cross the street. The ones who didn’t judge him on his looks and stopped to get to know him learned that for all his muscle and gruff he truly was a gentle giant. In the end Vinny’s body hurt, he was sick, losing weight and throwing up, he was blind, and at the very end didn’t even want to get up for his daily walks. I would whisper in his ear and tell him it was ok to go, that Louie and Darwin were waiting for him at the pond. One night when I was telling him this I heard what I already knew, he would never leave us, not willingly, not if he hurt or was in pain or had no joy left. We were his people, he loved us unconditionally, and he had to be here to protect us. So it was up to us to let this loyal, loving, amazing being go. His last day was filled with lots of love, songs, his favorite story about how the storkie brought him to us, raw lamb and naps in the sun. His end was peaceful. So many people responded when I said he was not doing well- it touched us to know how many people loved him. If you have a Vinny memory or story feel free to share it.
Posted on: Mon, 20 Oct 2014 17:54:59 +0000
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