More Than Just A Pet / Happenings In The Outhouse 23-Oct-2026

Pets are a part of many people's lives.  Dogs, cats, fish, rabbits, horses, cows, you name it, many have them.  Big or small, they are more than just a pet.  They are parts of our family.  We celebrate their birthdays, play with them (even when we don't feel like it), take naps with them, and do all kinds of quirky things with them.

Growing up, I had a little white poodle runt named Max.  We loved him so much.  I remember the day he passed as if it were yesterday.  I was a teenager, and my friend Kregg had come over to the house to watch Weird Al's movie UHF.  The movie hadn't even started and my Dad looked next to the chair he was sitting in and said something like, "Um, I think something's wrong with Max."

Sure enough, he was gone.

We buried him in the backyard.  I still remember the wooden "resting place" Dad made him, and we all wrote notes on the outside, and he had toys and his comfy bed with him.  There had never been one just like him.

On a side note, I never have watched UHF and probably never will.

My parents did get another dog a few years later.  Ernie was a Pekinese, so another small dog.  He was more my sister's dog than mine because, by that time, I was going to college and not home very much.  I do not remember when he passed, truth be told.  It was still devastating though.  Again, he was more than just a pet.  He was a loved member of the family.

My grandpa Ray passed away in August 2019 and, prior to his passing, his health started to decline and my parents took care of his little dog Rusty.  It did not take long and, yes, he became more than just a pet, he was another loving member of the family.

Long story short, dear old Rusty took a turn for the worst last week and joined his furry brothers in Heaven along with my grandpa.

No matter what, pets truly are more than just pets.  They are loving members of the family.