Making memories with Toby

Toby is the most affectionate dog I have ever owned. He wants nothing more than to be near me at all times. He’s usually at my feet or lying next to me on the couch. Toby does sleep in our bed. When I brought him home as a rescue he slept in a dog bed on my side. I had another rescued Jack Russell at the time that my sister adopted a few weeks later. Before she adopted Jack I told her both dogs went right to bed at night and wouldn’t get up until I did. I found this email I sent my sister about the dogs and how well they were doing.

Jack slept all night again, in Toby's bed hanging out of each end. Toby slept in his bed. You should see how these two get along. It's like they both know they had it rough so they’ve bonded. They were probably talking in bed the first night. Toby said, "Hey, how long have you been here?" Jack said, "I got here Wednesday and they've been treating me good. She feeds me, gave me a bath, and kisses me all the time." Toby replied, "I think I got her with these eyes. I hope they keep us because the food is good here." Jack said, "Yeah, I know, I never had a treat before bed before, they have cool toys too and dog beds all over the house."

Toby, Jack, and Bonnie. Toby was in our home four days when this was taken.


Jack found his forever home on March 1st, just two weeks before I trapped Darlin and brought her home. When Jack left it meant Toby had to sleep alone. One night I looked over and Toby was looking up at me with those big brown eyes. And you know what happened then. I picked him up. He tucked himself in next to me and now I can’t imagine him sleeping anywhere else.

Toby will not get in bed without my permission, not to sleep anyway. He can jump in the bed after Bonnie when they are playing and wrestling, but if it’s about sleeping with Mommy he asks by making a puffing noise through his cheeks. I usually reach over the bed as he stretches and reaches for me to lift him up. If I ignore him his puffing sound will turn into a bark. I have ignored it because he wants me to pick him up and I’d rather he just jump in bed and lay down, but he won’t. He wants Mommy to put him in bed.

Two weeks ago I had terrible low back pain. Something I have suffered with at various times in my life since I was in my early twenties. I use to push myself hard, working like a horse at times, and lifting things I shouldn’t have. One summer when I was in my 30’s I scraped, sanded, and painted our entire home all by myself. I remember my older neighbors telling me, “You’re going to feel that when you get older.” They were right. What I did in my 30’s, I started feeling in my 40’s!

The back pain was unbearable. I was taking pain relievers and using a heating pad with no relief whatsoever. I had some Lortab that my doctor gave me this past Spring for stomach pain when we discovered I had a hernia. I had been taking them too, but nothing seemed to work. One night I took a Lortab when I started feeling nauseous, light-headed, and sick to my stomach. It was actually kind of scary. My husband was downstairs when I called out to him that I needed to lay down. I thought I was going to get sick, but couldn’t, so I stretched out across the bed on my stomach with my forehead on top of my closed hands.

Toby jumped up in the bed and scooted closer to me, placing his chin on my hand and gave a slight whimper. I said, “Mommy’s okay, Toby.” I felt him move foreword on his tummy, getting closer as he positioned his chin firmly on my hand next to my forehead. Then he backed up quickly and barked at me. I said, “Mommy’s here, I’m okay.” He laid his chin back over my hand as I felt him sigh and let out a deep breath into my hair.

It was a memorable moment. A little piece of our history that was created in a minute of uncertainty for him. He won’t jump in bed to sleep, but he didn’t hesitate to jump up and check on me when I wasn’t feeling well.