Two weeks ago, we had to put Harley down as he finally succumbed to his battle with Prostate cancer. Today, I returned home to find Taz, our 19 year old Shih Tzu / Heinz 57 mix, the "Old Man" of the pack, had passed as well while we were gone. I found him laying in the kitchen near his water bowl, still warm to the touch. Abby, the youngest, was devastated when she got home from work this evening. Abby rescued him from the apartment complex where her father used to live after their neighbor moved out and left him outside when she moved out because she could not take a dog to her new place. There is a special place and torment in Hell, in my opinion, for people who do such things. Harley and Taz both slept in Abby's bed for as long as we have been in this house. Now, we let her mourn as we do for the plucky, STUBBORN little guy who we shall miss terribly. His eyesight was failing, he was deaf (or pretended to be), and it was a contest to see if we could get him outside before he decided to do his business, but he was our "Old Man", the last of the Three Musketeers (Davey, Jager, Taz) who moved into this house with us. Occasionally, he would surprise us with a sudden burst of galloping, tail waving proudly as he scampered like a puppy down the hall, sometimes with Yoda in hot pursuit. Pete is upset; he's carrying his stuffed Triceratops with him everywhere, which he does when he is unsettled. He's brought it to me several times now and laid it at my feet, only to return and take it from me and continue his pacing. One of the toughest things occurred when I was looking for Yoda earlier today (when Yoda goes missing, expect trouble) and finding him lying next to Taz, who we wrapped in a blanket after we found him so Abby could say good-bye. He's been back to him a couple of times since, before Abby came home, Both times, he sniffed and nosed the blanket gently, then he looked at me sadly before quietly walking away. There is yet another empty bowl tonight, a new hole in our lives, a new pain to heal, and yet another long and happy life to celebrate. Go scamper now Taz, eyesight and hearing restored, go chase along with Davey, Jager, and Harley through the field without wearing out or struggling to climb the stairs. Go play "Old Man", now and forever, Amen.