When Melissa Meiners and James Killen first started dating, she made it plain that if things were going to work out, he had to get along with her dog Sammy as well.
“I warned him that if Sammy didn’t like him, we wouldn’t see each other again,” Meiners told The Dodo. “I was partially joking — it would absolutely be a red sign since Sammy loves everyone, but it often takes him a few meetings before he warms up to them.” It turned out I had nothing to be concerned about; the two of them fell in love right away. Sammy has declared James to be his other person, and their connection is the most adorable thing in the world.
CREDIT: MELISSA MEINERS
Meiners and Sammy frequently visit Killen’s house for movie evenings with him and his three teenage daughters, and anytime the girls are viewing a movie that the couple isn’t interested in, they take Sammy up to Killen’s room and the three of them watch a movie together there instead. Meiners understood very quickly that Killen’s bed was too high for Sammy to jump up and down from, so every time they went over, she began dragging Sammy’s special steps back and forth with her. Killen didn’t want her to have to go through this every time she came over, so he devised the perfect solution.
CREDIT: MELISSA MEINERS
“Unless Sammy became ‘Air Bud,’ he wouldn’t be able to get up on the bed,” Killen told The Dodo. “I wanted to create some steps for my pal so Melissa wouldn’t have to haul the stairs over for movie evenings.” Instead, I chose a ramp because I felt it would be easier on his hips and back.”
CREDIT: MELISSA MEINERS
Killen started to work on Sammy’s ramp as soon as he had the idea. The ramp was supposed to be collapsible so that Killen could store it when Meiners and Sammy weren’t around, but he immediately learned that if Sammy jumped on it the wrong way, it could tumble over. He didn’t want Sammy to be wounded, so he opted to screw the ramp into his bed frame instead, making it a permanent fixture.
“I can’t picture Melissa and Sammy not being a part of our life, so there was no other concern than his safety,” Killen explained.
CREDIT: MELISSA MEINERS
When Meiners and Sammy came over for the first time after the ramp was finished, Killen brought them up to his room — and Meiners was immediately moved to tears seeing just how much Killen cared about her and Sammy.
“James built the ramp only a few days after we’d been dating for four months,” Meiners explained. “We’d always knew this was it for us, but this really reinforced it even more for me, especially when I found out it was now a permanent fixture.” When I saw the ramp, I burst into tears at his considerate effort. It’s all about the little things with me, and he always tells me how much he loves me with lovely gestures like these. He’s so nice to me, and he’s so nice to Sammy.”
CREDIT: MELISSA MEINERS
Sammy fell in love with his ramp once I showed him how to use it. He enjoys being able to curl up on the bed anytime he wants, and Meiners feels much better knowing that he is always protected no matter where he is in the home.
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