My condolences, they really don't stay with us long enough do they! I have a golden named Chili. He'll be 3 next month. I had hoped to train him to be a therapy dog and we were well on our way (you cant help but to smile when you see a happy golden). We almost lost him last year due to a few serious conditions, but by some miracle he turned around and slowly improved over the next 6 months. We spend 5 hours a day giving him food and water, but he's back to weight and you wouldn't know how sick he is unless i told you. Everyday with him is a gift, and at any time he could turn around and find himself where he was a year ago. That said, some days he's a royal PITA. Couple weeks ago he decided it would be prudent to swallow a tennis ball. An hour later, the vet got it out and he and the vet are no longer BFF's. He's got a Swiss watch in his brain. He tells us when it's meal time. He doesn't particularly care for my antics in the garage, except when I clear everything out. It serves as his playroom, so when it's empty, he stares at me and looks over at his toys..."can we, can we? Can we play now?". He lives for three things in life, food, going outside and play time, but a good nap is a distant favorite when nothing else is brewing. My favorite part of the day is the morning. He's bright, happy, acts like he hasn't seen you for a week and ready to start his day! There is something contagious about his outlook on a new day! I don't look forward to the day he leaves us.
