Wednesday, July 14, 2010

NIKKO

Soon it will be three years since my beloved Nikko passed away.  He was my buddy, my baby. Nikko and I were together before I married my husband or had kids.  He was my family BEFORE I started a family.  When I brought my newborn son home from the hospital I was worried that Nikko would be jealous and might not like having a new baby around.  He was a large and powerful dog and although he never hurt a fly I new the damage his breed could do.  I worried needlessly.  The day I brought my boy home from the hospital I placed him in his crib as soon as I walked in the door.  Nikko jumped up to investigate, his tail wagging a mile a minute.  From that day on he loved my son.  He never once growled and always had tail wags and doggie kisses for him (even when he pulled his tail when I was not looking)!   Sadly, Nikko passed away while I was pregnant with my daughter.  I am sure he would have loved her just as much as he loved my son.  Nikko was a very big part of my life and in his memorie I gave my little girl the middle name "Nikkole".

My Nikko was the sweetest dog ever.  With Nikko being such a gentle soul it is funny that his original purpose was to be someones guard dog!  An artist had purchased him as a puppy from a breeder with the intention of training him to be a guard dog for his art studio. One night the puppy managed to get out of his cage and proceeded to chew and destroy all of the artist's supplies!  Needless to say, the puppy was no longer welcome in the studio.  So, he came to live with me and I gave him the name "Nikko". 

Nikko gave me 15 years of unconditional love. I am crying right now just looking at his picture. I know he is no longer suffering and is waiting for me over the rainbow bridge. I love you my friend.


Rainbow Bridge
by: Anonymous


Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.
When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

9 comments:

Karen Mortensen said...

What a sweet dog. Glad he was a good friend to you.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kalei's Best Friend said...

I am so sorry for your loss!. I remember our first cat.. She was our experiment to see if we could raise her and take care of her, as my husband said then he had confidence we could raise kids....yep, he put animals and kids in the same category as far as responsibility....tho at the time I thought it was his warped sense of humor....I am sure u learned alot about Nikko's unconditional love and I am sure he knew yours.

Unknown said...

Sorry, I was just trying to change my ID to "BLissed-Out Grandma" instead of "Nancy," when I deleted my entire comment. I grew up without pets, but now I've had cats a long time, and I finally understand the bond people form with their animals. Sounds like Nikko was a great part of your family.

cj Schlottman said...

(Sob). I know how hard it is to lose a best friend, and my heart goes out to you. There is no relationship that compares with that which we share with out pets. Cherish your memories. I'm thinking about you.

Brooklyn Book Lover said...

Thank you all for the kind words. It is so nice to be able to share my feelings and have my blogger friends here for support. Thanks guys. :-)

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for stopping by my blog & commenting!
I'm sorry about your Nikko! I am in the same boat, it will be 3 years ago this Sept, that I lost my sweet baby girl boxer, Mathilda. It sounds like your relationship with Nikko was an amazing friendship! Looking forward to reading more about you!
Be blessed!

Teresa @ ♥ Too Many Heartbeats ♥ said...

Oh, Nikko sounds like he was such a very special dog! I'm so very sorry for your loss.

We lost our beloved Keanu last summer. He had been with us for 9 years and had pretty much grown up with our two youngest daughters. He was an 11 y/o golden Pomeranian named Keanu that we rescued when he was almost 2. He was such a sweet dog.

Keanu had been perfectly fine and appeared well just before my husband took him to the Vet for his regular yearly check-up. The Vet said he appeared to be in good health and they gave him the necessary doggy immunizations that were due. Then the next day, he started behaving very strangely and became very, very sick. He died a couple days later. :*( We were so shocked and heartbroken. Although he was 11 years old and had lived a good life with us, his death seemed so very odd. It happened so fast and was right after he had been to the Vet and had been given a clean bill of health. We still miss him so very much. I love that Rainbow Bridge Poem. It makes me smile. Thanks for sharing it and for sharing your story about Nikko.

I'm stopping by from Java's 'Follow Friday 40 & Over'. I wanted to say hello and share some comment lo♥e.

I just became your newest Follower and I would be really honored if you would take a few minutes to check out my blog and follow me, too, if you like what you see.

In the meantime, I hope you and your family are enjoying a wonderful week!

Blessings,

Teresa <><

♥ Too Many Heartbeats ♥

Two Pitties in the City said...

Your Nikko was gorgeous! It's so unfortunate how little time we get with our dogs. I adopted my "bullie" Miss M and we had a wonderful few years of living together as bachelorettes before we met E and adopted Mr. B. Miss M and I will always have that bond. It's so reassuring to hear Nikko's acceptance of your son. I know pitbulls are "nanny dogs" despite what everyone says. We don't have kids now, but we're hoping for the same acceptance once we do have kids.