Mr.Frawley,

hey a while ago I sent you an e-mail telling you about my dog Keltie and how we had to put her to sleep... I am glad you responded to that e-mail it made me feel so much better and so did your website! I miss her sooooooo much and I just keep remembering all the good times we had together but it just makes me cry and miss her even more. I guess God just gives us dogs to have kind of as a present...I guess all good things don't last. Well, if anyone else e-mails you about loosing a pet and they need someone to share their pain tell them that they can e-mail me. Well thanks for everything you've helped me with. May God bless you!

~Fiona

I am about to lose my 8 1/2 year old GSD that is from very strong working lines. He is one that has bad hips so we were never able to follow through on advance obidience with him,,,he could not sit/stay for more that one minute without having to drop to a down/stay. I first thought he was being a pain and testing me but x-rays proved beyond any shadow of a doubt that he had severe hip problems at the age of 8-9 months. All of my plans changed. He was neutered and made into the most loved and fantastic pet anyone could want. We found out he had cancer that has already spread into his lungs on 7/24. He has skins lesions that had come up within a week or so and the fine needle aspirates showed funny looking cells. While he was sedated to remove a couple for biopsy we x-rayed his chest...the tumors were already there and growing FAST!!!! They tend to almost triple in size within a couple of size...not just size but density as well. We tried one round of chemo but 2 weeks afterward the places were bigger than before we did anything. His blood counts dropped and really had to encourage him to eat. At this point my boss/vet says just put him on Pred and keep him comfortable. I have seen enough other pets go through this but it is never is easier. He is eating some raw fod, some kibble and honestly whatever the hell he wants right now!!!! The original cancer started in the left kidney and has now metasticised in the skin and lung. He does not have much longer left. I am planning on getting another puppy that will be ready the end of September even if he is still alive. He is my baby but life moves on. I have read all of the poems and things but it sure is nice to know that other people feel the same thing I do. It is late and I am tired and upset....please consider that if this letter seems to wander. If anyone has any comments or anything please feel free to respond. I just like knowing I am not the only one out there doing this!!!

Thanks so much for understanding. This is the first post I have made to this BB. I hope to be able to make many more...if not about Darth then about the new puppy!!!!

Jerri

I know the pain you are going through and I sympathize with you. I lost the best dog I will ever own last September (the 22nd). As the year anniversary comes fast it has me missing her even more. You are not alone in your pain and know that it will take some time to grieve. Don't rush through it let yourself cry or whatever you need to do. Talking about it helped a lot and my friends and family were there to listen. I know losing the best friend in the world is devastating. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your dog.

In 1987 I had to put my PSD Duke to sleep. For five years he and I were always together. When I knew that it was time I just could not let him go. I talked with the trainer who had started our K9 unit and asked him if he had ever cried over a dog. His answer was poetic. Cry to your all drained out, allow yourself to go through the steps of grief. Work hard on these steps and after a period of time the pain will be less and less. The name of the book that detailed these steps I believe is On Death and Dying but don't quote me. Your dog was not just a dog, it was your partner, a member of your family and someone that I loved. It is better to allow you buddy to go than to hold on to him and have him suffer. Love him or her as much as he did you. When I was looking for a new pup I met a woman who weighed 100 pounds. On her office wall was a picture of a woman that weighed over 200 pounds. I asked her if that it was a picture of her handler. She stated no that it was her and she had lost the weight after her chiampion had died. She told me that you was never able to get over the grief of losing her chiampion. The implications of this story are that grief is a natural reaction to the death of a love one. Allow yourself to grieve but do not stay in this zone. Work the steps.

When I was 12 my parentes put my campaion dog Lasie a collie to sleep and just told me she must be lost (she was old) Ashort time later I found out the truth......something was lost in my soul. Later my wife had to put her cat of 18 years to sleep I went with her and saw a touching ritual that took place.On the way home I cried and explained about Lasie
10 years later we bought a german german pup had i could not hold back my JOY
Although it will be 1 month till our sofar namelees pup arrives i'm keeping my self occupied by learing about the breed and diets etc.
It all came together for me when my wife said "well you finally got Lasie back"(tears)
I wish you all on this page none of my misery but all of my joy....A dog is mans best freind