This morning, Pigeon took a poo. She has been holding it for days. Then, she stood, and with my wife’s help, squatted, and peed all over the bedroom floor (there were pee pads down, obviously). We could not have been more excited.

Doggy rehab sucks.

Thursday night Pigeon, my beloved dog of 12+ years, suffered a stroke. She’s already blind, pretty much toothless, and is just coming off of invasive GI surgery from swallowing a penny and some plastic. I was out of town for a conference, waiting to meet my wife in Nashville for the Adele concert. Luckily, my wife was still at home getting ready to meet me. Not so lucky for her, she had to witness it all.

Watching an animal have a traumatic brain injury right in front of your eyes is horrifying. Especially when it’s a 55lb. dog that most believe to be invincible. My wife is a champ.

Thank God there are pet emergency rooms (shout out to Med Vet on Clybourn Ave.). Yes, we are the people that took our dog to a doggy ER where she got a doggy MRI by a doggy neurologist, and where she will go visit a doggy rehab specialist later today. Thank God for all those people who helped her, sat up with her at night, gave her meds, cleaned her up, cared for her, and more. Yes, we are those people who did all this and will do more for her because Pigeon is no ordinary dog. You’ve read Marley & Me (or atleast seen the movie?); Marley has nothing on Pigeon.

It’s Tuesday and Pigeon is far beyond where we thought she would be with her recovery. Thank God for her iron will.

I can learn something from Pigeon. She literally let’s noting get her down; not even a stroke, not even blindness, not even surgery, not anything. That damn dog has to will of an ox, and a drive for food that is coming in handy right now. What if we all had that much resolve and that much will? Image the things we could do if we let nothing stop us. Imagine how much of the world we could change if we had the resolve of an almost 13 year-old blind, toothless, stroke-victim dog.