Thanks.
Theyāre always in our hearts, string. I still miss my Standard Poodle, Murphy, but would feel guilty getting another and having to leave him home alone at times.
So I get my pup fix when visiting family. The one on the left is a year-old Newfoundland/Standard Poodle mix and on the right is a three-year-old Irish Water Spaniel. The Newfiepoo is the size of a small pony.
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Over the years I have had many dogs and cats that I was attached to, but in the late '80s I had to have my collie Melanie put down. I took her to a new vetā¦I had recently moved. On the way I was crying and when I arrived her parking lot was full. I let her know I was there then went back to my truck, climbed in to the bed, pulled her into my lap and sat there bawling my heart out. People were stopping and asking about me thinking I was hurt. Dr. Beverly came out and climbed up with us, examined her and said her body was shutting down then explained to me what she would do and how it would go. By this time she too was crying. She administered the drugs then sat with me with tears coursing down her face too. For some reason losing M hit me deeply and for over a year at odd moments I would start crying. Needless to say she is still my vet.
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Thatās how āMarley And Meā came into existance. The author, John Rogan grieved for 7 years and talked constantly about Marley and his co-workers suggested he write a book about their relationship. Thatās how the greatest love story ever was written.
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imbecilia, Iāve started reading the book you suggested. We have been there before.
When we were kids, although we already had two of our own, we got a Brittany Spaniel.
Buddy was so big as a puppy he had trouble getting around.
One of my favorite photos is our 1yo daughter laying back across him. He was as sweet natured as a dog could be but he did all the things puppies do .
He lived 14 years . We had a Std poodle after Buddy who also had a long happy life.
Weāve had at least 3 cats during that time. Same story.
That expected longevity is probably why losing Lilly was so difficult. We expected her to outlive us. Our kids had agreed to adopt her if she did.
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9 years ago we lost our beautiful Dalmation/Terrier āPeachesā to lymphoma. We spent 30k doing surgery, radiation and chemo. The hospital was 20 miles away and some weeks we went daily. It exausted us physically, emotionally and financially. It only gave her a mere 7 months more to live. But that 7 months were precious and she felt well. Iād do it all over again for my beautiful treasure who was found in a dumpster along with her 2 siblings. She was a month shy of her 8th birthday. I know you will see lily and your other fubabies again as will I. God bless.
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Your suggestion of reading the book reminded me of something very important that I did with Buddy and had forgotten.
His bed as a puppy was a box beside my bed. If he was just restless I could put my hand on him and heād calm immediately.
If he had to go, Iād carry him to the back yard. We were in Central Texas and it was winter and he didnāt mess around. Esp with snow on the ground. I was in my mid 20s.
Almost 50 years later, my body canāt handle that activity a couple of times every night from our upstairs bedroom.
We got Lilly when she was 8 months and house trained.
We have 2 good cats and Iāll apparently need to learn to be satisfied with them.
My condolences String. A good dog is definitely a good friend, and even more consistent in their loyalty Iāve found. I was lucky growing up, collie/sheperd mix named Tawny, had her from about 5 until 18. She came into my classroom a few times, played on the playground with us during recess, sailed for months on our boat with us, and was a 24/7 companion. She initially slept at the foot of my bed, then shared the bed, then used to try to push me out of bed 
I felt she could never be replacedā¦so now, for the past 38 years, I have fishā¦and unfortunately, have one old guy who has to be fed by hand while we reminisce about the old days āwhen we was fabā.
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not to be crass, as I teared up 'cause Iāve been there , you need a new Vetā¦$30,000 to prolong a petās life for 7 months? 4 years ago, I brought my 18 yr. old best friend to the vet for the last timeā¦4 previous visits in the last yearā¦I thought it just wasnāt time yet and the Vet didnāt agree with me but didnāt say that even though I didnāt think she was suffering enough, she probably was more so than I could tellā¦Thatās the crazy partā¦ I didnāt think she was sufferingā¦I was wrong. I now keep her on my desk(ashes) and sheās my screensaver. Now we have a crazy German short haired pointer
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No it doesnāt. Koda passed 3 1/2 years ago at age 12 1/2. Old for a Berner. He was an extraordinary gentleman who loved all living things and showed me how a real man should act and what I should value. We miss him every day and after 3 1/2 years I still get choked up thinking about him.
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Dear String
I am so sorry for your loss. To lose a beloved pet at age 20 is sad but expected.
To lose a young pet at 15 months is devastating. I had twin Siamese kittens, Toby and Tim. Tim died of heart failure at 6 months. Toby lived to be 20 years old. Of course I adored Toby, but I never got over the death of his twin, my beautiful little kitten.
Margot
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string iām glad you had a chance to deal with your loss and share it in writing. we lost a kitty to something similar when she ingested plants in our backyard. my wife and i cried and cried for days. we gave her the best life that we could and yet when something unforeseen happened we were completely not ready to deal with it. the grieving process was very tough but we managed and have found reasons to celebrate the other 4 dogs and 1 cat we currently have. we focused our attention in creating the best possible experience for them to the best of ability. we take them on all our trips. and to that respect, we wonāt support hotels/motels/airbnb/etc that would not accept them. we found many establishments who understand our needs.
unfortunately, at some point we will all have to leave this world. i say that with a heavy heart. but i know thatās one of those undeniable truths. again thank you for sharing.
ps: we take the 4 dogs paddling with us all the time. my wife and i have 2 dogs on each SUP. they enjoy every moment of it.
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Many years ago I had to take my daughterās guinea pig to get put to sleep. She actually had a breast tumour that split open. I bawled all the way home.
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Because the hospital she was treated at gave her 7 months in complete remission, the 30k was well worth it and I would do it again.
Thank God I hate cats since all I have are 5 of them. God knows how many Iād have if I actually had wanted any. 
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She hated cats.
(Was a matter of pride.)
As she lioned-up with furballs,
her mane emotions aside.
Thomas Stearns her a glance.
With long paws itās not pretty.
Gone ersatz dog gone cats!
Made from scratch hello Kitty.
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Seldom we friend
of such faith without fail.
Bringing us best
is the wagged-along tale.
Sorry for your loss, String.
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Lilly only had a stub of a tail but it wagged with blinding speed.
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