2700 miles away, but always close to my heart

Just wanted to acknowledge the passing of Toby, one half of the famous Chub brothers residing at the sanctuary known as Golden Pines. I've followed their story from the beginning and became quite invested in these two Senior Goldens; hoping they could live their lives out together and never have to be separated again. These guys were so happy and resilient, making friends all over the world and providing comic relief via the GP blog. Their story is told at the following link: Toby & Bubba's story

Fly Free Toby, you can run and bark with Bubba again. I'll miss you both, but will smile knowing you are together again.

Toby

Goodbye Hamlet -

Our good friend Hamlet left for the bridge this morning. I know Lady will be waiting to show him around. There is not much to be said beyond the beautiful story Hamlet's family tells of his time with them.....Goodbye and God Speed to Hamlet

Run free my girl....

Yesterday afternoon Lady crossed over to the bridge. She began to shut down, her organs attacked by the evil cancer. The last and kindest mercy was necessary sooner that I had planned, but there was no doubt what I had to do for my dear, sweet girl. She passed in my arms, free of her pain, knowing how much she was loved. I will miss her and remember her for the rest of my life.
I can't thank you all enough for your kind words. So many questions and doubts flood your mind as you contemplate the gut-wrenching options. I found strength and light in every one of your sincere messages. As far as blog-land goes, I will always be known as KT and Lady; a lifelong reminder of my first, entirely digital Golden who inspired so many of these pages. Here is one of the many beautiful quotes and thoughts that were sent my way. 

"We who choose to surround ourselves with lives even more temporary than our own, live within a fragile circle; easily and often breached. Unable to accept its awful gaps, we would still live no other way. We cherish memory as the only certain immortality, never fully understanding the necessary plan."  -- Irving Townsend 

A Young Dog Once Again

You're giving me a special gift, So sorrowfully endowed,
And through these last few cherished days,

Your courage makes me proud.
But really, love is knowing when your best friend is in pain,
And understanding earthly acts Will only be in vain.
So looking deep into your eyes, Beyond, into your soul,
I see in you the magic that will Once more make me whole.
The strength that you possess, Is why I look to you today,
To do this thing that must be done, For it's the only way.
That strength is why I've followed you,

And chose you as my friend,
And why I've loved you all these years...My partner till the end.
Please, understand just what this gift you're giving, means to me,
It gives me back the strength I've lost, And all my dignity.
You take a stand on my behalf, for that is what friends do.
And know that what you do is right, for I believe it, too.
So one last time, I breathe your scent,

and through your hand I feel,
The courage that's within you, to grant me this appeal.
Cut the leash that holds me here dear friend, and let me run,
Once more a strong and steady dog, my pain and struggle done.
And don't despair my passing, for I won't be far away,
Forever here, within your heart, and memory I'll stay.
I'll be there watching over you, your ever-faithful friend,
And in your memories I'll run….a young dog once again.a

Golden Lady of Shoreline

After a session with the Veterinary Internal Medicine specialist and an ultrasound, the news is not good, her condition is grave. She has 3 tumors on her liver and at least one on her spleen. She physically deteriorates every day. It's actually quite shocking. It breaks my heart to watch her refuse food, throw up her water plus stomach bile and waste away. After the almost 3 months of watching Devo waste away from cancer, I made a promise to myself and all of my furture dogs: I'll never let you suffer, because of my own breaking heart. As hard as it is to let Lady go, I just can't allow her to continue suffering from this sudden internal trauma. Thursday afternoon will be the last and kindest mercy for my girl. 

We’ll be spending quality time with Lady the next couple of days. Feeding her cooked chicken, ice cubes and anything else she wants. There will be plenty of cuddling, petting and cooing over her. She sticks very close to me; her eyes following my every move. Many tears have been shed with many more to come. She sure made an impression on everyone she ever met. Like my brother said “she brought so much happiness to our family in such a short time”. I won’t be posting anything for awhile. I’m sure you’ll all understand. I’ll put together a photo slide show and eventually a video tribute to Lady, and post it sometime in the future.

Lady, day one of our life together
May 27th, 2008

Today she is comfortable and protected in the arms of her loving family. This is my first adopted senior Golden. I always knew that her time with us was abbreviated, but no matter how much I expected it, it's a blow to the gut of epic proportion.

Our friend Luke....

The minute I saw The Luke on his blog, I was drawn to his handsome, senior Golden Lukeness. He reminded me so much of my heart dog Devo. I followed his adventures and marveled even more at the similarities. News of his death from cancer fills my heart with indescribable sadness. Our collective sympathies go out to his family and all who loved him. We will miss you very much Luke. We are so happy you found the best furever home and lived the Golden life until the end. See you at the bridge my friend.

We will forever be part of Team Luke

In memory of Duke

My good buddy Duke the Big Dog went to the bridge today. The classic gentle giant, he was a sweet and devoted companion to Brian, Kim and Skylar. He will be missed. See ya at the bridge big guy.

Memorial service for Rosie the Newfoundland

I am sad to report that another innocent dog has been gunned down, this time in a quiet Seattle area neighborhood by local police. Rosie escaped from her back yard and was roaming loose in her neighborhood. 911 was called only because a concerned citizen was afraid the dog would be hit by a car as local kids chased her down the street. After being chased by the police, harassed and tazed (twice) by 3 policemen, one of them decided to put 4 bullets into the young, female Newfy who was cowering in terror under some bushes.
-FOUR BULLETS- This is just so outrageous - words escape me. WTF is going on with the law enforcement community? Bear Bear, Rosie and so many others. Is there no empathy, no training (besides target practice), no conscience?
Oh yea, one other thing: Rosie had been chased through an open gate into Lora Perry's fenced back yard. She could have been easily contained until brighter bulbs arrived. WHY did deadly force have to be used? WHY

Read Lora Perry's account

KOMO news story about the shooting

Another Golden star in the sky

Paw her peeps a message if you wish

Golden star Abbey

Paw a message to Abbey's Mom

Two special Golden friends

This Golden face belongs to Lucky Luke. He is in need of some special healing vibes from everyone who has a little to spare. The Luke is a berry, berry special  boy who is hurting right now and needs everybody to cross their paws for him. Stop by to give some encouragement to The Luke and The Mom.

Click here to see his blog

Our next friend is called "Courage". He has been operating with a bum leg for some time now and its just not getting any better. His story is on Gentle Ben's blog 'cause Courage is Ben's "Fairy Dawg Son". These are two very fine rescue stories.

Click here to read about Courage

LADY SENDS KISSES AND GOLDEN WOOFS TO HER FRIENDS

Remembering Toby

1989 - Sept. 8, 2002

Toby lived a good, long life with my brother Chip. He was a Sunny/Solo puppy and except for Cosmo, he was the Sunny puppy I knew the best. Very much like his MaMa dog Solo, he was happy, carefree and obsessed with retrieving and snuggling. Chip sent these pictures up last month, so we thought this would be a good time to display them. We miss you Toby. See ya at the bridge.

Good looking boy

Caught in a stretch!

This is one of my favorites. Such a happy boy.

Toby could smile on command, or just smooth one side of his muzzle.

Couple months before he died. Toby loved beach roaming on the Oregon coast. I'm sure that's what he's doing right now.

The story of Toby - this blog - 2008

Farewell to Max

MaxDog from South Africa has gone to the Rainbow Bridge. It has been a real pleasure knowing Max and learning all about South Africa. We will miss you buddy.

My personal favorite picture