I WASN'T BORN YET WHEN MY DAD ADOPTED PEPPER FROM THE PASADENA HUMAINE SOCIETY, I WAS BORN JANUARY 8, 1994, I WAS ADOPTED AT 6 DAYS OLD, AND MET PEPPER FOR THE FIRST TIME. I HAVE ALWAYS HAD A CLOSE BOND WITH PEPPER, ONE OF MY FONDEST MEMORIES WAS, IF I DIDN'T WANT TO TAKE MY NAP IN MY CRIB OR MY TODDLER BED, I WENT UNDER OUR PIANO BENCH WHERE PEPPER WOULD BE TAKING A NAP HIMSELF, I WOULD GET MY LITTLE PINK BLANKET AND GO LAY DOWN UNDER THE PIANO BENCH, LAYING ON PEPPER'S BACK. HE DIDN'T CARE HOW LONG I SLEPT THERE, HE WOULD WAIT FOR ME TO WAKE UP BEFORE HE WOULD MOVE FROM THAT SPOT. ANOTHER FOND MEMORY I HAVE OF PEPPER IS WHEN PEPPER WOULD BE OUTSIDE WITH ME AND MY FAMILY WHILE WE WERE IN THE POOL, PEPPER WAS DEATHLY AFRAID OF THE WATER, BUT, THERE WAS A TETHER BALL BY THE POOL AND PEPPER WOULD HAVE THE BALL TOSSED TO HIM BY ONE OF OUR FAMILY MEMBERS, HE WOULD HIT THE BALL WITH HIS NOSE, WE LAUGHED, AND LAUGHED AS WE WATCHED HIM PLAY TETHER BALL WITH EVERYONE. BY THE TIME I WAS 4 YEARS OLD, PEPPER STARTED SLOWING DOWN VERY QUICKLY, BUT I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WAS GOING ON AT THE TIME, I KNEW HE WAS GETTING OLD BY THE WHITE FUR ON HIS FACE, THAT'S MOSTLY WHAT A FOUR YEAR OLD WOULD RECOGNIZE AS GETTING OLD, BY FIVE YEARS OLD, I KNEW I WAS BLEEDING FROM UNDER PEPPER'S TAIL, NOW I BELIEVE PEPPER PASSED AWAY FROM CANCER FROM THAT AREA., ONE MORNING, WHEN I WAS SEVEN YEARS OLD, I CAME OUT TO SAY GOOD MORNING TO MY PARENT'S AS USUAL, AND MY DAD LOOKED VERY SAD THAT MORNING, HE TOLD ME THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO GET PEPPER PUT TO SLEEP THAT MORNING, ME AND MY DAD WENT ALONG WITH MY UNCLE GARY FOR SUPPORT TO TAKE PEPPER TO THE VET TO BE PUT DOWN, WHEN WE GOT THERE, I WAS TRYING SO HARD NOT TO CRY, WHILE MY DAD AND THE VET TRIED TO EXPLAIN WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO PEPPER IN A WAY I COULD UNDERSTAND. THE VET FINALLY LET ME, MY UNCLE, AND MY DAD SAY GOODBYE TO PEPPER FOR THE LAST TIME, THEN, I WAS ALLOWED TO KISS PEPPER ONE LAST TIME, THEN THE TOOK HIM AWAY, PEPPER LIVED A VERY, VERY LONG AND WONDERFUL LIFE, HE WAS 19 YEARS OLD, ALMOST 20,SO PEPPER MIGHT HAVE BEEN ONE OF THE OLDEST AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERDS AT THE TIME OF HIS PASSING. HE WILL ALWAYS BE IN OUR HEARTS AND MEMORIES FOREVER.