Ariel Johnson is in Doggy Heaven.

Ariel Johnson

Age 11, December 28, 1999 - October 11, 2011

Sweetest dog in the world

Ariel joined our family at a very sad time in my life. She happened to be the ray of sunshine that gave me a glimmer of hope things would get better. Ariel became my constant companion. My husband worked nights and for almost twelve years Ariel kept me company. She was the happiest, most beautiful puppy. She hated to see me sad. She would do anything to make me laugh including grabbing underwear and socks out of the dirty clothes hamper. Ariel loved to steal toilet paper, dirty or clean. Although my husband was not a dog lover, she loved him unconditionally. When I got the call that my dad had died, Ariel rode in the front seat the whole trip and everytime I cried she would jump up and steal a kiss. No matter where we went, everyone thought she was the sweetest dog ever. Grooming seemed to be one of her joys. She would look in the mirror and you could tell she knew she was beautiful. Over the years, she tinkled so many times out of happiness that I just made sure everyone told her hi on the tile instead of carpet.

About six months ago, I noticed she wasn't as active and she wasn't moving if we got close to stepping on her. She wasn't running to the door if we came in. I thought it was her hearing. She was getting extremely tired after walks. I thought it was arthritis. She started shaking out of pain when waking up. The vet recommended Rimadyl. It seemed to make her act like a puppy. We had finally planned a family vacation out of the country. Ariel had never been left for more than four-five days. This time she stayed at the vet for a week. When I picked her up, she looked like an old dog. She was having trouble walking, ate less, and couldn't tolerate even quick trips outside. She started panting and even passed out. I was frantic. I thought maybe she had been too stressed. The vet said her heartrate was in the 40s.

All I could do was cry. Ariel started swelling despite diuretics and her breathing got worse daily. I decided to get a puppy to make her feel like she always had a companion...it made everything worse. She watched while the puppy stole kisses and hugs. I felt guilty knowing that the puppy needed to exercise. Last night, the puppy kissed her face and Ariel passed out. We thought she had died. Ten minutes later, she was scratching at the door. Ariel was panting uncontrollably. You could see her heart beating all over her tummy and her breathing made her ribs visible.

After many bouts of crying, I decided to stop being selfish and let go of the dog that had given me years of love and comfort. I wrapped her up in her favorite blanket and drove her alone to the vet. I purposely went back to work to stay busy. I feel helpless and immense sorrow. I knew she would likely go well before me, but I miss her already. The house seems so empty, even with two kids and a puppy. The new puppy is unsure of what happened. I have lost my parents, brother, aunts, uncles, grandparents...but this loss is really sad.