In the spring of 1999 we adopted Griz from the GRRACE program and he became a wonderful member of our family here in Zionsville. He quickly adapted to his two Scottie
brothers as well as two feline siblings. Griz gave our whole family unconditional love and many
memorable "stories" of things he would eat and tricks he would pull. With his very large head and body, the neighborhood always believed a gentle baby lion was watching from our yard.
Griz loved to hike, walk, and ride with me in the Indianapolis area parks and always was first to the door when I mentioned it is time to get into the car.
When our first grandchild came on the scene in October of
2002, Griz made himself available to be rolled on, petted, and poked as our grandson began to grow up. A gentle nudge or a sloppy lick was always available to anyone who had the time.
We noticed that Griz began to loose his "panache" in late November of last year so our daughter and son-in-law, both local vets, began testing and attempting to diagnose what
was going on. Negative tests kept giving us hope and a short return to playfulness in the later part of January brightened our lives but Griz was only putting on a good show for us as internal cancer was winning
a bit more each day. Griz died on the morning of Feb. 6th after seemingly understanding from all of us it was OK to leave go and be at peace. We enjoyed and loved our "son" for just under 5 years but his unconditional love will be felt for our lifetime.
Sim & Karen Hain - Zionsville