MONROE — It was a sunny close to a dark week for Tango, a 7-year-old boxer. Days after finding out he had lymphoma, the pup’s family put up a spontaneous meet-and-greet event on Facebook. The response was heartwarming.
Over 150 people followed updates online, and dozens of strangers, family and friends showed up on July 17 to pet and play with Tango in the afternoon. Among those that stopped by were a couple of “strangers” that saw the Facebook post and traveled 80 miles on their motorcycle. Another visitor brought a Bark Box originally intended for her own pups. The box included several squeaky toys, like a rainbow unicorn pool floaty replica and a pretend water gun. Other visitors brought treats and balls.
“I lost track of how many visitors Tango had, how many balls were brought, how many treats were eaten, and how many times I heard what a handsome, sweet boy he is,” said Theresa Robertson, Tango’s human mother. “His tail was wagging for a solid two hours — at varying speeds, of course.”
Days before the meet and greet at his home, Tango met a room full of kids at Monroe’s Parks and Rec office.
Tango is an energetic and loving black and brown boxer that lives on Monroe’s south side — across from Abe Lincoln school — with his five human family members: Cody and Theresa Robertson and their three children, Merric, Beckett and Everett.
They also have two other dogs: Dory, a 9-month-old Olde English Bulldog, and Pickles, a 15-year-old Miniature Pinscher.
Theresa said when kids walk by their house on the way to or from school, Tango’s bark comes off as scary, but he doesn’t have a mean bone in his body. He simply wants to lick faces and have his neck rubbed.
“Tango loves people. Maybe you’ve seen him barking insanely and pogo-sticking his way down our fence line across from Abe. He sounds fierce, but he’s just asking you to love him,” Theresa said on the event’s Facebook post.
It was a neck rub that found the cancer in the first place. While petting Tango one night in June, they noticed some new bumps on his neck. After a couple of weeks of the bumps growing, instead of receding, Cody took him in to the veterinarian. The prognosis was devastating.
Theresa said the options were chemotherapy, steroids, or to do nothing at all — which could have meant Tango had just a week or so to live. The decision was unanimous to not go the chemotherapy route, which would have included injections. Instead, Theresa said they decided to follow the steroids path. Days later, Tango was energetic and looking for loving hugs again.
“We aren’t sure how much time we have with him,” Theresa said. “It could be weeks, but it could be months. What we do know, is that right now Tango is feeling good and is happy.”
