January 12, 2005

Goodbye, Widget. If you'll permit me a personal note, I just wanted to let my monkeyfriends know that I helped my beloved Widget the dog die last night. She'd herniated another disc in her back and was in a lot of pain. That link is our final portrait together; here's more on my sweet, silly friend, my first dog, whom I'll never forget.
posted by SideDish 19 years ago
  • Sorry to hear it Dishy. She looks like a heart stealer :) Glad you had your times anyway. Dogs, right? *looks at Jack Russell Terrierist-modified sneaker*
  • Aw shit, I'm sorry. I hope you feel ok. Well, I mean that sounds stupid, but don't grieve too much. You did the right thing, if the poor little blighter was in pain. I hope you don't feel too bad. I know it guts me when my little pals have had to go. Uh, dunno if it means anything, but I have been there, & just thinking good thoughts at you. I'm sure that animals are part of some greater energy that we also join after passing.
  • Hey Sidey - sorry to hear that. We lost a much-loved (and 19 yr old) moggy last year. I know how horrible it is. At least the little girl was loved and had a good life, and no doubt left you with happy memories (and chewed shoes, apparently). Take it easy...
  • SideDish, I am sorry to hear of your loss of your dog-friend. How sad, if I could I'd give you a hug. Losing a family member sucks.
  • Jeez. My condolences, SideDish. I know how tough that is.
  • She was a beautiful, beautiful creature. Bless you, SideDish. My deepest condolences.
  • Oh SideDish, heartfelt condolences on the loss of your charming, snorty pup. I'm glad you were there for her to the end. /sending hugs and good monkey thoughts
  • Very sorry for your loss. It's a tough spot to be in, but be sure to take care of yourself (take a day off if you can, remember to eat, stuff like that).
  • I'm so sorry to hear about your loss, SideDish. I am sure you will treasure the time she was with you.
  • Sorry to hear the bad news... sounds like Widget had several years of the good life. We hope you are holding out ok.
  • Sorry to hear the bad news... sounds like Widget had several years of the good life. We hope you are holding out ok.
  • Chocolate. Eat chocolate. We insist. It will make you feel better.
  • Sorry, SideDish. We had to put our family dog down last fall for similar reasons (old, and suffering horribly). It's a hard loss to take. Deepest condolences.
  • Beautiful dogster, by the way...You were very lucky to be owned by her.
  • I'm so sorry, SideDish. Nostril is right; you did the right thing with your baby in pain and no way to fix it. We've gone through this twice in the last few years with ferrets, so we know how tough it is, both to watch them slowly go and to make the final decision (which we were spared, both times). *hugs* and *strength*
  • My heartfelt sympathies, SideDish... Having to make that decision is extremely hard, and you try to tell yourself you're doing the noble and humane thing.. You have to keep the faith that the little furry critter is better off without having to endure pain and suffering on a daily basis. I've lost two pets in the last couple of years, so I know your pain. It does get better, and the pain will recede, but Widget will never be forgotten. I think it's nice that you made this a FPP. This way, Widget will be in the hearts and thoughts of so many people monkeys. I think that the most important thing in life, whether canine or human, is to touch the lives of as many people as possible. So, Rest in Peace, Widget...
  • I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. I've lost two dogs myself. It does get easier. I know your special little guy knows you did the right thing for him, even if it wasn't the easy way for you.
  • I'm so sorry for your loss Sidedish. My heart goes out to you.
  • You did the right thing, SideDish. Enjoy your memories, and feel better soon! Many hugs.
  • So sorry, SideDish. It is such intense pain losing a pet. Be thankful for the time she had with you and when the time is right, consider adopting another little family member. Best wishes.
  • thanks for all the kind thoughts, losing a pet is indeed a special kind of pain. i'll share one more photo with you, here's widget at our friend bruce's cabin. she got to go off-leash there! and drink from a stream. she even found a dead crawfish to roll on. great doggie times.
  • I'm sending you a big hug. Keep remembering the good times.
  • Heartfelt condolences and healing vibes to you SideDish - it is the toughest decision to make. It's wonderful that you and the gorgeous little Widget gave each other many years of happiness. Take care of yourself! (and Nostril's right about the chocolate) *hugs*
  • My condolences. Losing a beloved pet is rough. My mangy old cat died years ago and I still miss her.
  • So, is no one going to call her out for self-linking in a FPP? No? Nor me. There has to be a doggy heaven where all the dead doggies go.
  • Doggy heaven is the same heaven. Heaven without dogs ain't heaven. dangnable dogs.
  • Sidedish, so sorry to hear about your pup! Take care of yourself and remember to focus on the great life your dog enjoyed together with you!
  • THis sux sidedish, sorry for your loss. That's why I don't do pets anymore, after two fishies and a pheasant dying on me, I couldn't handle it anymore.
  • Sorry, Sidedish. Thinking good thoughts for you.
  • When it comes to animals, that's my weak spot. That last pic really got to me. I'm so sorry, luv.
  • i'm so happy to be able to share her with you all. and yes, oneoliveshort, we will indeed be adopting another rescue dog. there are so many out there that need good homes!
  • What a sweet little Widget. I'm sorry for your loss. My little doggie Steve and I send you all the best vibes. I hope your heart feels better soon, and remembers only the good stuff.
  • Rest assured you did the right thing, SideDish. It's sad to put a pet down, but I hate to see them suffer with chronic pain. Our thoughts are with you.
  • One thing I always regretted with my lovely little man Boris Cat was not taking enough photos of him, in fact we had none! I only realised after we had to have him euthanised (he had an accident). All I had were sketches I made, but his amazing boisterous personality lives on in my wife & my memories. We still mourn that little blighter 4 years later (we can't even talk about him, actually, he was our little boy & we went thru real grief & regret about it). It's grand you've got those photos, SideDish. Just don't ever, ever doubt it was the right thing to do. I hope that if I ever get in too much pain, that I'll be allowed to move on. At a certain point, it becomes the only humane thing to do, it's so bloody stupid that it can't be accepted for human beings in pain, when the time comes. I'll shut up now, I'm getting a bit too sooky
  • Just ignore me.
  • I assure you that there is no afterlife for humans which is not available to dogs, too.
  • thank you, jesus, for making that possible.
  • Oh, SideDish, I am very sorry to hear of your loss! The good times Widget had with you and the quality of life and happy experiences you were able to provide for her are what you'll find you will remember. Glad to hear she rolled in the dead crawfish -- sweet doggy perfume! -- hope the clean-up wasn't too trying for you. Lost three of my own cherished dogs just three years ago, so I can say from experience it is indeed memories of the happy times you'll carry with you. And Nostril is absolutely right about the chocolate!
  • SideDish, I'm sorry for your loss.
  • My condolences, SideDish. She was such a sweet doggie!
  • I'm so sorry, SideDish. I'm getting all weepy thinking about what you're going through and I hope the pain passes soon to be replaced by happy memories. On a side note, I'd just like to say thanks to SideDish for encouraging us to visit our local animal shelter several months ago when we were looking for a dog. I was sort of hung up on getting a full breed and didn't think we'd find a dog at the pound that was right for us. We ended up adopting a border collie/retriever mix that I never would have otherwise considered. Despite some trying times (he's an escape artist) I have grown to love that dog like a second child. He's an amazing, very loving animal and I can't imagine our family without him. So thanks again for being an advocate for pets in need of adoption and for making a difference.
  • dr. zira, thank you so very much for a bright spot in my day. i'm honored to have had some tiny part in your finding a new family member.
  • I'm glad I now know that our dog Poupoune, also a chihuahua X-bred, is not the only dog who hates all other dogs. Sorry for your loss.
  • Sorry to hear it, Dishy - hope you're not feeling too down. He looks like he was a lovely little guy. My first (and only) dog, Laddie, was put down when I was away at university - he was almost as old as I was. It was sad not being there when he went, but it was a relief to know that he'd been put out of his misery. He'd been fading away for years. He's buried down at the bottom of our garden now, near the stream that he was always a bit scared of when he was alive.
  • Condolences.
  • Thanks for stopping by, Widget...
  • Ditto what others have said. You and Widget are in my heart today. I had to put my beloved Tenzin cat to sleep in November, and I still miss him terribly. I will light a candle for Widget (and you) when I get home tonight.
  • :^(
  • I am so sorry, SideDish. We nearly lost Melon the cat a few days ago, and I cannot imagine what I would have done without him. Take care of yourself and make no apologies for your feelings should anyone comment that it was 'just a dog'. He is your boy, and I hope for you comfort and solace in this incredibly trying time.
  • So sorry. That's one of the harder things life has to offer. Take care.
  • I'm so sorry SideDish. Doing the right thing is often so difficult. I hope you feel better and that there's enough Widget around to help you heal. Feel better (and yes, the chocolate thing). Hugs.
  • So sorry to hear this Sidedish, I know how hard this is (lost Fred the cat to a heart attack last year) and knowing you've done the right thing doesn't really help, only time does that. Hugs to you and your other furry friends; my dogs Toby & Theo send their condolences too & wish they had known Widget, who they are sure they could have convinced to play a great game of 70 mph grab socks, chase, jump and destroy the garden.
  • My heartfelt condolences, SideDish.
  • Condolences....
  • All dogs go to heaven...remember the joy and the happiness that you shared.
  • If there are dogs in Heaven, are there also cats? Cuz I don't wanna go there if my Bessie Smith isn't going to be there. Do cats and dogs get along in Heaven? /sucking thumb talk of dead pets always makes me a weepy wreck
  • I tell you that cats have the same afterlife opportunities as dogs and humans.
  • Thanks Jesus!
  • My sympathies. I’m sure my pal Hairy is there to great Widget.
  • great = greet
  • Rabbits? Guinea Pigs? Do they go to heaven too? Seriously Sidedish - my condolences ...
  • arse_hat, I saw it as "grade" for some reason. Waggy tail? Check. Soulful eyes? Check. Personality? Check. 'Tude? Check. Loved and was loved? Check. Come right in, fella, there's a nice breezy spot over yon cloud just for you....
  • I remember an old Twilight Zone episode about some old timer and his dog who both drowned in a river and are walking along a country road in the immediate afterlife. St. Peter comes along to take the old guy to heaven but the dog refuses to go. St Peter says the old guy can go to heaven but if the dog won't cooperate he'll have to stay behind. The old guy can't bear to part with his faithful dog so he refuses and keeps walking along the road. A little while later another St. Peter arrives and explains that the first one was an imposter...the devil trying to trick them into damnation. St. Peter explains "A man will walk into Hell with both eyes open, but a dog...a dog always knows".
  • sorry to hear about your pooch, sidedish. my dad had to put his dog krusty to sleep when i was in high school... i remember when the little guy was born. it was about 10 years before he could bring himself to get another. my wife still misses her old kitty, her friend from third grade until third year of marriage. it's sad. but as much as it hurts to lose them, the time you had with them is worth it, right? that's why i still have two spoiled obnoxious kitties at home. they aren't replacements, and i'll miss them too someday. but the time you spend with them... really, really sorry to hear this. good feelings in your direction. hope you are OK.
  • That's a very nice story rocket88, think it applies to cats too? Very sorry Sidedish. Her pics were adorable, and I'm sure she's still watching you.
  • Remember the good times.
  • Of course cats go to heaven. It wouldn't be heaven without cats. And dogs. And all manner of other animals. Heaven is a huge prairie with a lovely forest, & rills & copses & streams & hundred acre woods... If there aren't my old cats & dogs & hampster & horse & rat etc pals in heaven I aint goin'. I'll hover in space instead. But I know that it won't come to that. (The Pope recently stated that animals do have souls, contradicting centuries of doctrine. Probably one of the few things I'd agree with him about.) The beings one loves become part of oneself, & you part of them; forever it stays this way. They take their place melding with your soul, & their souls teach us what it is to be human. Thus the cycle goes on. Without our bonds to animal companions, we would not *be* truly human, integral this is to our existance as a species. Thus it follows that if there is an afterlife for us, our symbiotic partners (for that is what they are) must have that existance also. At least, that is what I choose to believe.
  • My condolences, SideDish. Wherever your dog has gone to, I'm sure she's happy, healthy, and well-looked after. Get another dog pretty soon. While a new dog can never replace the one you've lost, they do have a way of making you feel better about things.
  • Many many condolences, SideDish, I myself have had five heatbreaks in the dog loss department (the most recent, almost exactly a year ago, when I had to give up my Lollypup (part lab, part collie) of twelve-and-a-half years when I had to give up a pet-friendly apartment; I left her with the nicest old lady in that apartment building, only to have Lolly's health almost immediately go downhill - what was worse, the nice old lady lost my forwarding address and I didn't get back in touch with her until 3 weeks after Lolly had to be put down). That's not going to keep me from adopting another canine family member the next time I am in housing that allows it, so I hope you are equally undeterred...
  • A few months ago, I took my mother's old cat to be put down. He was in pain too much of the time - everything going wrong. She was so bereft when I was getting him into the carrier, and he was crying so loudly that she cried uncontrollably. Still, she knew that he shouldn't have to go on as he had been. He appeared to her in her dreams that night, and he was the young, healthy cat of years before. She took it on dream value, and it really helped her deal with it. SideDish, I hope you get similar comfort. I'm sad Widget had to go though the pain, but he's out there, somewhere, watching over you. And I'm sure he's as happy to do so as when he was before. If you're like me, it'll take time to dream about lost ones, but it will come. And, it'll make him more dear,while it helps you to go to the next stage.
  • Koko--I thought I was the only person who had a cat named after Bessie Smith! Little Bessie. She was my first and greatest love.
  • Mine too Apis! My parents named her -- I was too young to name her anything but "Fluffy". I had to have her euthanized when I was 22, and it was the hardest thing I ever had to do. I remember foolishly staring at the ceiling in the vets office, trying not to cry while also trying to write a check. I like your philosophy on pet heaven, Nostril. I know I'll find Bessie lounging there with our old Newf, Trinity Bay. And this time, Trinity won't slobber all over me. Or at least, I won't mind as much.
  • Where did this long hair come from?
  • I'm in tears. I'm so, so sorry for your loss. You're in my prayers.
  • Oh, SideDish. I'm so sorry. I've got my old Brandydog next to me as I type.
  • What everybody said.
  • ah, sidedish, I weep a tear for you. I patted the urn on my desk wherein are the last bits and pieces of my missy dina, who was rescued at nine and kept living and loving 'til 15. She left last year, in my arms, at my request. I couldn't let her fake it, as she tried to. Her essence will be shuffling up to Widget's and saying 'ain't love grand?' 'especially more so if one has to wait so long for it.' 'Now let's chat about how things went and giggle together at all the good one's we pulled on our loves.' I learned so much about love and giving and suffering and strength from my old gal. She's never far from me somehow and I still have a chuckle almost every day at the memories. We have a younger one, she raised and he mimics her tricks at times. Keep on loving and laughing and crying whenever, but the Widget will never leave that realm of the love between you behind. That is a forever thing between you two and can never change. Our pets never live long enough for our wants but their short lives entwine with ours and teach and nurture us with each generation we have. But there will always be one who is just that little bit more special....like Widget and missy Dina. We all shall share your pain, sidedish and know that it will ease and you will still be happy and with the Widget.
  • Jeez... now you people have me all teary at *work*; and redheads get so blotchy when we cry!
  • dxlifer: "Our pets never live long enough for our wants but their short lives entwine with ours and teach and nurture us with each generation we have." Oh, right on! And SideDish has already said that she'll adopt again. And her next one will be utterly charming in a different way. While Widget will be there for her, one way or another, the new puppy will add to her sheer joy. Nothing is lost.
  • Go sidedish. The losses are insignificant to all we can gain by the giving. Another rescue? I beieve they are sometimes the absolute best. rills & copses *shock* I speed-read and first run I thought Nostril said rifles & corpses
  • Perhaps here it bears noting that this is the time of year when money is tightest (at least in the US) for animal shelters. There was a story on local news last night about a shelter that's been plagued with bad weather and too little money (they're trying to expand the facility), and the dogs are packed into inadequate kennels like sardines. The owner of the shelter said they take in 20 dogs for every single dog that gets adopted. So if you're thinking of adopting, please do, and if you've got a bit of extra cash, you might consider sharing some of it with those little guys.
  • mid: that's exactly what we did! we found a great and silly dog, Finley, in a rescue foster home, and i was sure to donate a bit more for all the other doggies too. thanks so much for all the kind words here and lovely emails from monkey friends. i bring fin home today!
  • You'll post pix, right Dishy? We wants to see the Finley!
  • That's great news, SideDish. Glad to hear you've found a new family member. Post pics immediately. Oh, and in case I didn't tell you, Jennifer and I enjoyed the story very much.
  • Tha Finnster! Finnagle bagel! Finopoles! Fin-Fin Fun Boy! Finley Pie! okay I'll stop. :)
  • I think that Finley's introduction into the land of Monkeys should be documented, not only with pictures. Let's have an ongoing Finley FPP. All our hearts are so happy for you from here. SideDish / well, I'm not sure about the parrot as he's being very obnoxious today.
  • Hurray for the Finley! Give her a pat from me :]
  • yes will indeed post photos ASAP. right now finley has kennel cough and my sweetie and i have, um, human cough. our two cats are incredulous, just staring at all this hacking. cough cough. *stare*
  • Well, hack up those fur balls and get on with life@ ;)
  • Fin has kennel cough? Is she being treated for this?
  • natch.
  • yup dx, he's getting antibiotics and cough suppresent tabs. poor finley! hacking and hacking. he's keeping me company today as i'm down with the flu. arg. pics next week for sure.
  • Hope ye feel better soon, SideDish! Hot tea, lemon juice, honey stirred together can feel soothing to a raw throat. Chicken soup. If sniffles, apply lip balm to nose so skin won't get sore and peel.
  • thanks *cough* bees *cough* from dishy woof! cough! from finley
  • I'm a fan of the hot toddy method of cold and flu doctoring. Kentucky style: bourbon, hot water, honey, lemon.