In Memory of Tequila Sette

If you asked me 20 months ago if Tequila would make it to Christmas 2003 I would have said it was unlikely.  But my amazing companion saw the summer of 2003, Christmas, Matt start crawling and very quickly follow by walking.  She loved playing in the snow last winter.  She ran and played with the neighbor dogs in the Spring of 2004, often out running her 4-legged friends.  She played with the kids this past summer as if she were just a pup.  Now, after her second Christmas since her Lymphoma diagnosis, I have no regrets, and I don’t think she does either.  We never thought she’d make it this far.  We never thought she’d have this much fun while she had terminal cancer.  We made the right decisions along the way, and sadly it’s time for me to make the next right decision.   

Tequila (Wilma) Sette
May 28, 1995 to December 21, 2004

Tequila has been full of energy and joy since the moment she came into my life.  Her sole purpose for existence has always been to make me happy.  She would strive beyond her physical and mental limitations to do everything I asked of her.  She never became jealous, but instead she welcomed those two-legged babies that would eventually crawl all over her, pull her tail, pat her head and the best of all, drop food during dinner for her to clean off the floor.  She has helped raise Katelyn, and taught her to care for others. 

Tequila started life as the beautiful Boxer pup with funny looking ears.  She was often used as an example of why not to cut a pup’s ears (“this is what can happen”).  She donated blood to those in need when emergencies came to the Emergency Clinic and then later our own hospital.  She spent endless nights at the hospital with me, often barking to warn off the semis parking next door.  She helped us feel what a client feels when we say the “C” word.  She became the example of how well a large breed dog can do with 3 legs. 

But she was always, and always will be, a part of my heart that could see past the bad and the ugly to realize the good, the fun, and the beautiful.  She was unlike any dog I’ve ever known in her truly unconditional love and devotion to me and our family.  She’s been my gift.  She will always be in the heart of my family and many of those who she touched through work and through play.