Doggone

[Malacandra]

Hey-ho, you always know it's going to happen one day but you never quite meet that day fully prepared.

Our lovely Staffordshire suddenly stopped eating around about Saturday and was surprisingly unresponsive from that day on. We managed to tempt him with a few appetisers, but only a few (and a couple of days ago he heard the knife on the chopping board in the kitchen and came through to see if there were any crumbs on the floor), and by yesterday he was going out to pee and then stumbling on the way back in and just standing there as though he couldn't work out what to do next.

So this morning Mrs M rang the vet, and this evening we took him away to live on a farm where he'll chase rabbits all day and be really happy. And I'm left mulling over Kipling poems like "The Power of the Dog" and "His Apologies" and regretting that there's only cooking whisky in the house.

Good night Gromit, and good dog.

[Dazzling White Diamonds]

[Rebo]

I'm so sorry.

[What Exit?]

I'm sorry Mal.

[Helena]

It's probably not much consolation, but it sounds like he had an amazing life right up to the end and didn't suffer. I'm so sorry.

[Malacandra]

Originally Posted by Helena

It's probably not much consolation, but it sounds like he had an amazing life right up to the end and didn't suffer. I'm so sorry.

We're lucky enough to live in a bit of rural England that's just a short walk away from some excellent forest trails where, well into the start of lockdown last year, he used to enjoy a good long walk with lots of smells to investigate.

Then he couldn't manage the forest walks again. Then he couldn't manage all of the "Back Lane" again. But within the last couple of weeks he was still good for a short walk and saying hello to some strange dogs, and it was really only a week ago that everything suddenly went south.

Although it's only August, I lit the woodburner for him one last time for him last night. There was a bit of interest in the eyes there, but he didn't stretch out and bask in the warmth like we used to. It was definitely time when we took him to the vet (and for the first time ever, he didn't fret and whine in the car all the way there).

[Rebo]

Do you want to share a picture?

[Jaglavak]

It always sucks, but you repaid a little bit of what you owed him.

[Malacandra]

Originally Posted by Rebo

Do you want to share a picture?

Do I need some kind of hosting site for that, or is there a way to upload directly?

[JackieLikesVariety]

night Gromit, and good dog

I'm so sorry for your loss.

[Rat Diva]

Ear scroomfles to Gromit wherever he his. to you and Mrs. M.

[Malacandra]

(We need a "Like" button. Thank you, everyone.)

[Rock]

Sorry to hear about Gromit. It's such a difficult decision.

[SmartAleq]

Awww, Gromit sounds like the Goodest Boi! I'm so sorry you lost him--I'm heading that way too with my old Bear, who's slowing down pretty considerably. It's never long enough.

As for a pic, if you go to imgur.com and hit "new post" you can drag and drop a pic then once it's uploaded you can right click and copy the URL to handle as you wish. I'd be more than happy to coo over your doggo should you decide to share some pics with us.

[taters]

I'm so sorry.

[Random Precision]

Rest well, Gromit. You were a good boy!

{{Malacandra}}

[Cochrane]

Caution: This will make you cry.



Farewell, Gromit. You were indeed the best.

[Rat Diva]

Yup, cryin'.

[Colonel Plink]

Please accept my sincere condolences.

It's a tough damn road to go down.

[thorny locust]

I am so sorry for your loss.

It's what we have to give, so that we can have love in our lives.

[JimNightshade]

I am so sorry. Strength and hugs are needed.

[Malacandra]

(As a very young dog - I had long since forgotten that he ever had a cuddly toy)



(A few minutes before the vet came out to the car. Thanks to Covid we couldn't be with him right at the finish, but I think he was well out of it by then)


...where's the images, then?

[Jaglavak]

C&P-ing the URL directly worked. I'm stumped.

[SmartAleq]

Originally Posted by Malacandra

(As a very young dog - I had long since forgotten that he ever had a cuddly toy)



(A few minutes before the vet came out to the car. Thanks to Covid we couldn't be with him right at the finish, but I think he was well out of it by then)


...where's the images, then?

Sometimes before the images are completely processed you'll get a direct link to the image, you need to grab it when it has the .jpeg tag on the end of the link.

But as we can see, Gromit was indeed a very adorbs and mostest Good Boi. May the Goddess hold him close and send him fat slow squirrels to chase until he can find you again.

[Malacandra]

Ah, there he is, thank you.

Squirrels? That dog thought he could chase hares when he was younger, deer too (we have a fair few muntjac where we live), and he wasn't above taking on a pheasant either. Never caught anything, but he always thought it was worth a try.

He very rarely barked, all his life. Once or twice we had a big mean neighbourhood cat about the place pestering our three, and he went charging out barking at it; otherwise hardly a sound out of him apart from a whimper that could mean "Daddy, it's the middle of the morning and you're still at home - isn't it time we went for a walk?" or "Daddy, please light the fire right now...". I lit it again on Wednesday night, when it was looking like we were going to have to make the call, but it wasn't like when he used to roll over and toast his tummy.

But he beat mast cell tumour a good six or seven years ago, so we had him for a lot longer than we might have. I was reflecting last night on the puppy parties the vet used to throw when he was little, to get the pups to socialize... he could well have been the last survivor.

He was, indeed, a Good Boi, as you astutely recognise.

[Guinastasia]

Poor Gromit.

I'm so sorry. Losing a pet is one of the worst.

[eleanorigby]

I'm so sorry. He was a real cutie! Why do we not have a puppy or dog emoji?

[Cochrane]

Originally Posted by eleanorigby

I'm so sorry. He was a real cutie! Why do we not have a puppy or dog emoji?

Yeah. We have a , a , a , a , and even a emoji. How about one for the doggos?

[JackieLikesVariety]

what a sweet face.

[Malacandra]

And a nature to match. Mrs M was a child-minder when we got him (during his long life she has been through a few other occupations, child-minding seems a long time ago now) and children could never do any wrong in Gromit's eyes. It was amusing how when an adult came to the door G would always position himself between the children and the door - not aggressively (he was never aggressive in all his life) but just to make it clear that they weren't getting to the children without his having something to say about it.

To his last two weeks it was always a delight for him to meet other dogs when he was out for a walk, and he would be whining to be allowed to go and make friends as soon as we caught a glimpse of one. Similarly, our window-cleaner came to do our windows just the Saturday before last and G fretted until he was allowed out to say hello (he'd known Chris all his life).

Ah well. Kipling, as I mentioned above, had something very much to the point to say on this, and if you had a touch of the onion fairies over that cartoon above, don't read the two I named in the OP or you'll bawl your eyes out.

Thank you very much for your kind words, everyone.

[Detroit Hoser]

I'm so sorry, Mal. May the hole in your heart be healed with memories of skritches and loving cuddles.