My beautiful, handsome boy with such a lovely personality, you were loved by all who knew you for your loving temperament, boundless character and the way you would talk to people when they made a fuss of you.
I searched for you following my great loss in 2005 and there you were a nephew of my beloved boy Ben who departed as a result of a tragic accident way before his time. I was told you were the biggest of the litter and that was just what I was looking for as Ben had been a large dog. The only thing I was unsure of was your colour, you were a bit lighter than Ben not his beautiful deep chocolate.
We spent a lovely weekend in Shropshire visiting you at the farm near Ludlow where you came into this world. When I saw you my mind was made up. You were so cheeky and lively and we learned you had stolen a pup from another litter which was so funny that I decided there and then you would be joining our family. You appealed to me even though there were other more docile brothers and sisters to choose from who arguably would have been easier to cope with.
It was so exciting to go and collect you a few weeks later. I had a special doggy bag for you to travel in but you didn’t want to stay inside and kept crawling out while whining most of the way home, so I ended up having you on my lap and soothing you with calming words.
I had hoped to collect your half sister Ellie on the same day, but due to a delay you ended up being an only dog for one night. Ellie arrived the next day and after running away from you when you were first introduced the two of you became the best of friends for the whole of your lives. There was never a cross word between you and you were together every day, apart from the times Ellie had to stay in hospital for treatment.
You both arrived in May and spent the spring and summer playing outside in the garden. We were lucky with the weather that year, so you enjoyed endless sunny, golden days.
Over the years we went on trips together. We spent a particularly memorable month travelling around Ireland and visiting the Isle of Bute and the Lake District when you were nearly a year old. You and Ellie chewed the new car when we had to leave you inside on the ferry crossing to Ireland and you had a great time exploring the scenic countryside.
You were always such a fit athletic boy racing around and jumping big drainage ditches without a second thought. There was that time you spied a herd of deer in the distance and went chasing off after them in an attempt to round them up but of course they just gave you the slip. So many lovely walks together….
Even just a few days before you left us you were still going on 2 hour walks so you remained active right up until your final days.
The end when it came was sudden and unexpected. You were 15 years old, but although you had had a sort of stroke nearly a year before you had made a good recovery and had been left with only a slight tilt to the way you held your head. You developed an infection and at first it seemed you would recover but then you had a relapse and had to be rushed in to the emergency vet where despite treatment you were not strong enough to pull through. You were in discomfort and severely unwell and so with a very heavy heart we realised the time had come to say good bye.
I would have wanted you to fall asleep in our home but due to the current Coronavirus restrictions that was not an option. Your last memory on this earth was having your paw held and being stroked and told you were loved.