Goodbye, my sweet Cleo

I have a gaping hole in my heart after having to put down my beautiful, sweet girl, Cleo. Though I only got to spend 2 short years with Cleo, she immediately stole my heart and I adored her from day one. Cleo was adventurous and spunky during the day, but at night she was a big mush who loved to curl up into my neck and fall asleep while I read a book or watched TV in bed. I cannot find the words to justify how much pain I'm feeling or how much I will miss every small detail about her.

At just 2 years old, Cleo developed follicular stasis which injured her liver. After a hard battle and a tough surgery that was hard on her, we had to come to terms with the fact that Cleo's journey had ended. The decision to put her down was one of the worst things I ever had to do, but my aunt told me these words that gave me so much comfort: "You are not ending her life, you are ending her death." On the day she passed, we spent a while playing and she seemed so happy and so much like her old self before becoming sick. When it was finally time to say goodbye, she passed curled up in my hands, where I know she felt safe.

The fact that she passed so young will always haunt me, and I know that the pain I feel now will never fully go away. All I know is that I will love her always, and I will miss her everyday.

Sweet dreams, my sweet girl.