Baby Bina

by Susan
(California)

Bambina at the Marriott

It's exactly two years since our beloved, beautiful red merle Bambina passed away, and this is the first time I have been emotionally able to write about her. One month after we were married, my husband and I picked up our first Aussie puppy who we named Bambina. We already had the best dog in the world which was a tan/white Akita named Yoshi, but he seemed lonely at our new home in Anaheim Hills, and to the point where, upon return of a bike ride one evening, we found Yoshi standing on the roof of the house, outside the front bedroom window where he had pushed through the screen, waiting for us. We though he may need a friend to keep him company which led to our finding Bambina, or I should say, she found us.

I'll never forget picking her up on a Sunday, and taking her home and giving her a bath in the bathroom sink. Yoshi welcomed her as a member of our family, and put up with constant harassment from the new puppy. I will never forget her zest for life, her smile that was so big she would actually show her front teeth, the way she slept upside down on her back, her wiggly rear end, her love of frisbees, and her yearning for herding and ruling us all. She brought us so much pleasure and laughter.

I miss her bright, expressive eyes, and the days of having to spell out certain words with my husband for fear she will hear us say the W word or the G(o) word or the T word. Actually, spelling out the word W-A-L-K stopped working because she figured out W-A-L-K was just the long version. It would be all over if she heard those. When Yoshi died, she would close herself off in the master bedroom closet, so we soon searched for a new member to join our family and she met her match in our new Akita, Sachi. Six months before she died, her and Sachi were at home with my husband one Saturday morning while I was at work, when a wildfire descended quickly upon our home, with my husband just having enough time to throw our 60 lb Bina and 90 lb Sachi into his Corvette. We lost our home and all of our belongings that day, but I remember thinking as the four of us spent the next month at a Marriott Residence Inn, who welcomed our dogs with open arms, thank God we were all still together.

Two months later, as we were just getting settled into our rental home, I discovered a bump on Bina's head, At first I thought it was just a scab, but it didn't go away and I took her to the vet where it was discovered she had a very fast growing, malignant tumor. We opted for 3 rounds of chemo, and thought she handled it well, since she had no visible side effects, but it did little to prolong her life. I drove her to the beach so she could see the ocean and smell the salt water, and took her for a hamburger and vanilla milkshake, and on May 29, after a long night laying next her and just knowing she had enough, it was time to let her go.

I often wonder if it was the stress of the fire that made her sick, as the last six months of her life was an environment of sadness and many changes. However, I hope she knew she was MY saving grace. I miss you so much, Bammbina, and think of you every day. I know you are keeping Yoshi company now. Thank you for teaching me patience and unconditional love.

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