In Loving Memory Of Thor

As dog moms and dads, the grief we feel when one of our fur kids passes away is as deep, heavy, and as real as it gets. We love them with every ounce of our mind, bodies, and soul and we do whatever we can to give them a great life. We are with them through health issues and aging. We are with them when they pass away. We treat their bodies with love and respect after they're gone. They've loved us unconditionally every single minute of every day.....it's the least we can do. When they are gone from this world, we hold memories of them close to our hearts. We memorialize them in a way most people don't understand. We pay tribute to them every day.

Recently, RMGDRI's own Laura Rubin and her family were able to memorialize their adopted Great Dane, Thor, in a very special way. Sadly, Thor passed away from a mystery illness. They did all they could to heal him but in two weeks after falling ill, Thor crossed The Rainbow Bridge. Now his collar and tags are in a sculpture outside of the Aurora Animal Hospital in Aurora, Co. A local reporter, Jordan Peel, wrote an article about it:

AURORA ANIMAL SHELTER STATUE HAS SPECIAL TIESTO LOCAL GREAT DANE RESCUE GROUP

AURORA, Colo. - Last Fall, the Aurora Animal Shelter debuted a new sculpture of a large dog and cat intended to draw pet lovers into the shelter. Within the sculpture's concrete, contains a personal memento of a well-loved pet from the Rocky Mountain Great Dane Rescue, Inc. (RMGDRI).

"I chose to design and fabricate two pets that would appear in adoration of one another," said Mitch Levin, a Chicago-based artist. "I felt the image best pictured the loving emotion we have for our pets and the fact that they become one of the family."

Inspired by a tradition with his work with Habit for Humanity, Levin wanted to include a personal keepsake in the concrete of the sculpture as an everlasting reminder. The contractor for the sculpture, Bob Taylor, offered to include the collar and tags of his recently departed Great Dane, Thor.

Thor was adopted by Taylor and his wife, Laura Rubin, who is president of RMGDRI. While large in size at 160 lbs., Thor was the epitome of a gentle giant sharing the couch with his 12 lb. Italian Greyhound "sibling," always making sure to give him plenty of room so as not to crush him.

After two years, Thor suddenly passed away from a mystery illness. He fell ill and in two weeks, Thor crossed the rainbow bridge despite repeated trips to the veterinarian's office. Thor will always be remembered for his goofy personality and loving nature.

"We are honored to include a reminder of Thor in the Aurora Animal Shelter's new statue," says Rubin. "It is awesome to know that Thor is linked to a facility that works tirelessly to give forever homes to other abandoned animals just like him. I am sure that he is wagging his tail in agreement."

Wow! What a great tribute! To see the actual article please go here.