re: best friend/Hunting dog

I've done it twice and my current dog is almost 12. All you can do is remind yourself that you gave the dog as good of a life as anyone could've. He was going to exist on this earth regardless of his relationship with you and he was lucky to find a companion that cared for him the way you did. Part of caring for him is understanding that there comes a time where his suffering is significant, and that you have the ability (and the responsibility) to help him get to where he is ultimately going to wind up fast and painlessly. You did the right thing by being with him when that time came because there is nowhere else that he'd rather be. It's also an incredibly unselfish act.

I get a little bit emotional even reading this post, but it's hard man. Losing a dog is absolutely brutal and I've taken dog losses worse than I've taken human losses and the problem is they just don't live long enough. As the second poster said, time moves on. Do yourself a favor and get another puppy that can bring you similar joy and experiences that he did. Every dog I've ever had taught me something different and has been special in its own right. I'm getting a puppy in two weeks and I hope she'll do the same. Like I said, if you get a puppy, that puppy was going to exist on this earth regardless of its relationship with you. The way I look at it, you're doing both the pup and yourself a favor by creating that relationship.



O/U 5 posts before "it's just a dog dude, get over it." GFY.