Today I lost my best friend - my Rottweiler died in my arms

Butch was around 11 or 12 years old.  I'm not sure because he looked about 2 when we took him into our house.  He was a junkyard dog and his owner sold out the business and needed to find Butch a home.  Handsome and smart, my wife fell in love with him immediately and he was here to stay for good.

Butch refused to sleep in his floor bed.  Every morning would find him nuzzled up to me in our king-sized bed.  My wife issued the ultimatum - "I'm not sleeping with that dog in our bed".  So Butch and I bought a king-sized bed and set it up in another bedroom.  Of course I could still visit my wife in her bedroom a few nights each week.

Unlike my wife, Butch never cared how much time I was on the computer.  Or what time I came up to bed.  Or how drunk I was.  Or how late I slept-in on Sundays.  Butch and I were best friends and did everything together.  Exercise walks, riding in the car running errands, sharing a double quarter-pounder.

Today after a quick walk, Butch collapsed on the garage floor and began panting rapidly.  I knew this was the end, this dog breed does not live much beyond 12 years old.  If Butch was checking out, I wasn't going to let it happen on the cold cement garage floor.  I picked all 110lbs of him up and carried him into the den and onto his favorite blanket.  I laid down and hugged him for about 3 minutes until he took his final breath.  That's it.  It was all over in 5 minutes.

I cried like a baby for about an hour.  Damn, I'm going to miss that dog.

Moral of the story:  Cherish your best friend every moment of every day.   You never know  which day will be the last day.

Thanks guys for letting me vent, 

I'm sorry for your loss Goose.  He's probably bragging about you and your wife to the other dogs in heaven, right now.

Sorry for your loss. After being that close for so many years it's hard to imagine your life without them.

RIP Butch

I could see that you were crying, You found it hard to sleep.

"It's me, I haven't left you, I'm well, I'm fine, I'm here."

You were thinking of the many times your hands reached out to me.

I want to reassure you that I'm not lying there.

I gently put my paw on you, I smiled and said "It's me."

I tried so hard to let you know that I was standing there.

To say to you with certainty, "I never went away."

In the stillness of that evening, I was very close to you.

And say, "Goodnight, God bless, I'll see you in the morning."

I'll rush across to greet you and we'll stand, side by side.

Be patient, live your journey out... then come home to be with me.

 

Amazing you only cried an hour...

I just cried for 30 minutes, watching the end of that bullshit movie Marley and me, last weekend. And my pup is just over a year old, and has her best years ahead.

Sorry for your loss, but I'm glad it was quick like that. I can only hope to be as lucky when that time unfortunately comes, and not have to look into those eyes for weeks or months and see the pain.

Thoughts and prayers to you and the memory of Butch.

Are you fucking kidding me with your very first post !