Ezio - Rest in Peace Buddy (2013-2026)

Ezio lived 13 long, awesome years and passed yesterday. As hard as it hurts, I know he isn't in pain anymore. A week ago he started slowing down his eating and went to the vet for blood work only to find he was anemic. X-rays on Wednesday showed a large mass near his liver or spleen that needed an ultrasound. Thursday we went to the emergency vet for the ultrasound and found out he had cancer in both his liver and spleen. We had an appointment scheduled for this morning to help him across the bridge, but he decided he would go out on his own terms yesterday. I wish I had laid down with him for 10 minutes more instead of leaving and coming back 10 minutes later to check on him so he wasn't alone at the end. We at least got to take him to the waterfront one last time to hang out in the sun.

We found him on Craigslist a little over a month after my wife and I purchased our first home a little over 13 years ago. We loved him the moment we saw the little guy. He was the last of his litter and the runt. An odd little puzzle piece that fit right in with us. He's helped us both get through a lot of hard times over the years. The house feels so different without him.

I'll miss seeing him scramble off the couch when something crinkles in the kitchen. I'll miss him scooting the water bowl across the floor when it's empty. I'll miss the way he'd prance around when he tried to go faster than a walk. I'll miss when he would come over and grace us with cuddles (and when they'd be forced on him).

We'll miss everything about our lumpy boy. He was an amazing big brother to his younger adopted sister Lucy. He was the best dog we could ask for and the best Craigslist find ever. We'll always love and miss him.