Goodbye, Sweet Starr

I’m heartbroken to say, our beautiful girl, Starr, has left us. We knew the day was coming for the past couple of months, but I did not spend that time preparing myself for the loss and sadness I feel right now. I just spent the time sitting on the floor with her, petting her paws, and telling her over and over what a good girl she was. Starr was an incredibly loving, friendly, silly, and brave dog. She gave my family so much joy, laughter, and unconditional love. We were blessed to have her in our lives.

Starr had been dealing with health issues over the past year and lost her ability to get up on her own at the start of last summer. Once up, though, with assistance and a harness, she was a determined little champ who took care of business and visited all her favorite spots.

Sadly, we lost her sister, Shelby, last August. As you would imagine, Starr missed her sister a lot; they had been together since birth.

Despite these setbacks, our girl never lost her sweet spirit, stubborn fight, and calm “don’t worry, I’m okay” demeanor. We gave her all the love, treats, and vanilla ice cream that she could handle until the end. I can’t thank my wife enough for being the best dog nurse ever over the past year, making sure both dogs lived their best possible lives.

I was packing away Starr’s stuff last week and was struck by how few things she had and needed in her life. It was such a small amount for such a large, joyous life that she lived and shared with us.

Starr did not play with toys or wear sweaters like her sister, Shelby. Starr was simple. She wanted to be outside sniffing anything and everything, or be inside napping on her favorite floor spots, or plopped on the couch giving love and getting snugs from all family members. She was very good at all three.

On a selfish note, I have never gotten so much love and affection from an animal in my life. I remember the day we visited the shelter to meet them and she trotted right up to me, tapped her paw on my knee, and then fell to her back so I could give her some belly rubs. She was just so impossibly cute and good to me, and I always strived to give her equal amounts of love and my time in return. It was not hard to do. Hanging out with Starr was the best.

Starr was afraid of loud noises and loved treats. Her sister Shelby was incredibly smart, Starr was not, and that was fine. She was a little goofball and childlike in many ways. We called her “Baby Starr,” and due to her solid and furry little frame, we also called her our “Husky Muffin” and a thousand other spot-on names.

Also, she did not have a tail, just a little hard-to-see stub on her butt that she wagged all the time.

Starr was a very good dog. She was the perfect little buddy for long neighborhood walks, solid chill sessions petting her awesome fur and super soft ears, sharing pizza crust, patrolling the perimeter of our backyard, riding in the car in her favorite seat next to her sister, and relaxing on the front porch in Belmar, while gently sniffing the ocean air.

She was exactly what our family needed when we adopted her and Shelby in 2018. They were a bonded pair of five-year-old girls when we got them. We always wished we could have been with them when they were young, but we were so lucky to be able to adopt them when we did. It was a magical time in our lives.

I have so many funny stories and lovely memories I’d love to share because I never want to forget my girls. I’ll write more later, but trying to find words and form sentences right now is tough.

I still haven’t fully processed Shelby’s death, and losing Starr is really hard to grasp right now. I’m wrecked, and have been crying every day for two weeks, but I’m thankful for the time we had with our own little star who lit up our world.

Thank you, my beautiful girl. Love you forever.