I didn't expect to be sharing sad news today, especially not the sudden loss of one of Ruby's friends. Cosmo was a Pug/Chihuahua adopted from Denver Dumb Friends League, the same local shelter that my Norwegian elkhound, Freya, came from.
I loved Cosmo's jaunty little trot, his soft butterscotch fur, his big baby eyes and his silky folded-over ears. He was an impressive fetcher, a consummate beggar for Chinese food, and his "speak" trick was the most hilarious thing ever, growling gutturally with his mouth open. I called him Cosmonaut.
Before getting to know Cosmo, I'd mainly been around bigger dogs - what I considered "real" dogs. Cosmo astonished me with his intelligence and intent focus on his person. He learned tricks easily and seemed to understand a good deal of what you said, tilting his head back and forth in that irresistible way.
Cosmo played a significant role in my adoption of Ruby, since I wanted a dog similar in size so they could be playmates. I'm so grateful that he changed my thinking about smaller dogs. The two of them had a lot of fun together after some initial skirmishes - chasing each other in madcap dashes around the sofas, tag-teaming the flying disc at the baseball field and crashing contentedly after wrestling matches.
Dogs never stay long enough, but when their lives are cut short at a young age it seems all the more unfair. In agreeing to share our lives with animals, we are signing a certain contract for heartbreak. I like to think it splits our hearts wider open, every one we love. I'm so very sorry for what Cosmo's dad is going through, and I will miss that cute, charismatic boy.
