It's Raining, (in my heart)

Jose, from San Jose, Almeria, Spain. Love at first sight for me, when I saw him. He was a scrap of a thing that fitted on my hand.
We thought about it for seconds, would he manage living on a boat, would he miss the smells, would he learn to cock his leg on a rocking boat?
The first week we had him,he fell overboard and nearly drowned, it put him off swimming and barked like mad when we went in the sea.
He learned all about sailing and could coil lines better than us. He was seasick a couple of times but aren't we all? He used to stop eating and hold on til we took him ashore, honest!
He travelled around the Med with us visiting exciting places, though he didn't much like Mount Etna, too hot on the paws.

Friends came to stay and played games with him, very sociable and he has his own FaceBook page with more friends than Geoff.

These photograghs were taken last week on the beach, he loves chasing waves.
When Geoff went back to the UK to work I stayed here, living on the boat and Jose and I had many great adventures. He went to the beach every day and raced up and down for hours. He was my constant, my mate, he knew everything, every mood, all the tears and laughter. We would dance together, shower together and yes, I admit it, he shared my bed, he was my shadow. We both shared a dislike for the horrid plank that we should have used to get on and off the boat so he had a harness that I used as his handle, then I would lift him into the dinghy and get ashore like that. He used to sit on my shoulder, being vertically challenged, he had a better view up there.
He and Dewi managed to live together and even share the same bed. Jose was not too keen when Dewi took him for a walk, holding his lead, it was so funny, Jose barked with indignation. Geoff came back to live here, we were a little family, he was our baby we couldn't have. We would walk for miles and miles, sniffing and peeing on everything. loved his wirey hair, his chocolate coloured eyes that could read my moods.
So.... we were standing laughing and joking yesterday, trying to get the rotivator to work,outside our house. It isn't a road, not a highway,it's a deadend. We get a couple of neighbours walking past every day.
Jose and Dewi were admiring the view and waiting for a walk, Geoff turned and Jose was convulsing........
He ran to Leonie's for the antidote, poisoning is rampant here. I picked him up and ran to our neighbours, time stood still but rushed as everyone shouted instructions, he'll be ok,we got the antidote quickly, make him sick. All the time my baby is convulsing, frothing, pooing.
Then he died, in my arms, I felt him die, just like that.............
I've not stopped crying. Can't see the keys.
I held him for hours, carried him around the house, put him on the bed. The neighbours came around and told me maybe he was in a coma, he shouldn't have died, we gave him the antidote.
There's no reason why poison should have been put down by my house. All my immediate neighbours are devastated, they have cats. It's illegal to leave poison around but who cares?
If I find out who did this I will rip their heart out and see if they feel a fraction of the pain we are feeling.
Finally we took him to the garden and Geoff dug a hole under the orange tree while I cradled Jose and told him how much we're going to miss him.He's got a new bandana on and he's wrapped up in Geoff's old fleece. As we left it started raining and hasn't stopped yet. Geoff had to work this afternoon, he looks awful.
I've taken Dewi for a walk and keep expecting to see Jose running away from his poo like he's got the devil chasing him, always done it, don't know why or wiggling his bum, did I tell you he was gay? He's 5 and still a virgin. Rest easy Jose, I love you.

I'm not going to blog for a while.