I lost my dog this morning...

[Disneymom4ever]

I just woke up this morning, and my black lab was laying by my bed on the floor, not moving. I then realized she's gone. She was 12, so a good long life for a lab, but this is so hard! We've had her since birth! I woke up my boys, and they came in and said goodbye. My Ds (17) put her in the garage for now. When my DH comes home from work, we will take her to the vet. I was so worried about my boys, they grew up with her, and that was their baby. But ironically, I'm the one who can't stop crying! This is such a tough day, there weren't even any signs. I guess that's a blessing. But it's still not easy. Anyway, thanks for listening. :(

[Ed]

Lisa, having been through that same scenario a few times, I know exactly how you are feeling. You'll continue to feel that way for a while; it truly is like losing a human member of the family.

You mentioned that she had no symptoms of anything wrong; that should give you some comfort knowing that she apparently didn't suffer from any long-term disease, and probably slipped away peacefully.

:hug:

[Disneymom4ever]

Thank you Ed, I truly hope she didn't suffer at all. You know, I heard her last night breathing rapid, but I was only half awake, and just thought she was hot and panting. I guess if we would have known ahead, we probably would have thrown her in the car, and drove like crazy to get her to the vet. That would have been awful as well. I guess everything happens for a reason. My older son just decided he's going to church this morning, and my younger one doesn't want to talk about it. Kids are funny, I guess everyone grieves differently. I being the only girl in the family, have decided it's a no makeup day, that would be useless today!

[Joannelet]

Omg I am sooo sorry to hear this.
Your doggie is at the Rainbow Bridge playing and running and being happy. You gave your dog a good life. Be happy about that.
You will mourn the loss for a very long time. It is sooo difficult to lose a furry friend. My heart goes out to your family.

[Jeff]

Lisa,
Sorry about the loss of your beloved dog/pet/family member. Tough times for your family.:(

[cather74]

My heart breaks for you. It really is like losing a good friend. :( Feel better.

[MNNHFLTX]

Lisa, I am so very sorry for the loss of your best friend (and they really are our best friends). I can imagine the how hard this is, given the suddeness, but glad that she was laying at your side. I'm sure that was comforting to her. :hug:

[Disney4us2]

Lisa,

I am so sorry. Your beloved, dear dog will be in your heart forever. Just remember all the unconditional love and joy that she brought to your family. Our pets are truly members of the family.

[DisneyWhirled]

Lisa,

I am so sorry for your loss.

We loss our beloved kitty a few months ago and I had a VERY hard time with it. It does get easier, but we still talk about him and miss him a lot.

The Rainbow Bridge story is beautiful. When you can, do read it. Your sweet puppy is in a beautiful place where you will meet again.

Take care and send our condolences to your boys and hubby as well.

[retiredfigment]

Lisa, I am sitting her with tears in my eyes because my heart goes out to you. I wouldn't have cried 6 years ago then along came Gidget and Bear. Take comfort in having given him a happy life.

[garymacd]

I'm sorry for your loss, Lisa. Take heart. A lot of us have been there. It is hard, but you can get through this.

[StitchFan#1]

:hug::paw:I too know how you feel. Two Years ago we lost our little doggie friend. I know its sad and you will get through it. Just take it slow and know that she diddnt suffer. You'll see her again later on.

[bouncer]

I am sorry for your loss. We are lab lovers as well...we have 2 ages 11 Drake and 3 Coot. I know it won't be long till Drake is gone-he's just sliding downhill and he's been with us almost as long as we've been married. I am so sorry for your family's loss. :hug:

[plutosnana]

Honey, all u need to remember is it's okay to cry. :(

[SBETigg]

Oh, Lisa, how hard for you. I'm so sorry.

[faline]

Lisa, I'm so sorry for your loss!

My very first pet was a god who was actually a year older than I was. He passed away when I was 14 and was a very significant loss for me.

I know you and your family will have a number of sad days ahead but you will also be able to remember all the good times!

[pianobabe]

Lisa,
I'm sorry you are going through this. Go ahead and cry. As the pastor told us when my brother died, "tears are because we love".

[RedSoxFan]

I'm so sorry for your loss.:(

[Dizneyana]

Lisa, my stomach just did a flip flop when I saw the topic of your thread.... :(

I am so sorry for the loss of your fur baby. It's so hard to lose a family member like that. You don't realize sometimes how much a part of your life that they are until they are gone..

Lots of hugs and pixie dust headed your way to help you get through. :)

[vizsla]

So sorry to hear of your loss.

[Tinkerfreak]

So sorry for your loss. When we lost our beloved Misti it was so hard on our entire family. It was the first real loss my kids had been through and they really had a hard time with it. One thing that seemed to help us all was making a donation to the local animal shelter in Misti's name. We got a certificate when we donated in her name and put her picture with it in a special book for "In Memory of Donations" and every time we go in to the shelter we can look in the book and see her photo and our certificate. It made us feel better to do something for the shelter and doing it in her name made it all the more meaningful.

[Dulcee]

There is nothing quite like losing your best friend. Our last lab was almost 15 when we had to make the heart breaking decision to have her put down. Regardless of how it happens its never easy.

Take comfort from her leaving on her own doing, while close and loved by you. It sounds like she had a very loving family.

[Disneymom4ever]

Thank you all so, so much for the kind words, I really appreciate it! Yesterday was one of the hardest, longest days we've had as a family. Everything was taken care of, carpets cleaned, dog bowl removed, etc. Just hoping to make it easier, for the kids especially. When my DH got home from work, he spent a good 15 min. in the garage saying goodbye. Then Jacob (my 14 yr. old) helped him put her in the back of the truck for the vets office. They both left crying. My son said that was one tough drive.

Well, today is a rainy Monday, but thats ok, it's a new day. Tinkerfreak, what a wonderful idea that was. The boys actually came up with perhaps buying a dogwood tree for the back yard. Then every spring, they could think of her when it blooms. I thought that was a wonderful idea.

[DizNee143]

soo sorry for your loss..ive been through it a few times and its never easy..




The Rainbow Bridge story

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.

There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigour; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.

The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster. You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again.

The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together

[Disneymom4ever]

Thank you so much Brittany, I truly have to believe that's true. It's just got to be. I think I've declared this another "no makeup" day.

[princessgirls]

Lisa,

My deepest sympathy to you and your family at this time of loss.

Our pets are family members and it is so hard.

My mom's beloved dog died last week, and on Saturday we all gathered in her backyard at noon, and had a memorial for Toro. We all shared a few of our fondest memories of Toro, and scattered his ashes in his favorites spots around the yard. It was a nice testimony to a beloved family member.

Julie:mickey:

[Lizzy]

I am so sorry to hear about your loss. I know it is very hard. I lost my beloved sheltie Bonnie back in 2005. I still think about her every now and then, and when I read stories about others losing their furry family members tears still come.

You will always love your dog, and you will see her again. She was probably very happy that she got to go peacefully at home next to your bed where she felt the most comfortable.

[TheVBs]

I am so sorry. Two years ago we lost our Samoyed the same way. He just laid down, went to sleep and that was it. I knew we were lucky that he didn't suffer, but it was still so painful. HUGS!

[betteratmk]

I'm so very sorry for your loss, we too lost our black lab a month ago while we were in Disney. he was my very best friend and it was terrible to be so far away. I know just how you feel, it's been 5 weeks and I still can't stop crying. We rescued a dashund named Lucky 2 weeks ago ,he is a lovely dog but I still miss my baby :(

[IloveDisney71]

I'm sorry for your loss. It is more than okay to cry. We lost our cat several years ago. Since then we've rescued two cats and a dog from shelters. We joke that it took two cats and a dog to replace that one special cat. Our wonderful vet sent us The Rainbow Bridge poem story and I thought it was the perfect thing for him to send. It made us feel so much better. It is so tough to lose such a special part of the family. Just remember all of those special memories and it will make things a little easier. I think the dogwood tree is a perfect idea!

[DVC2004]

Sorry I am late to this thread, but I am so sorry for your loss!:(

[SurferStitch]

I don't know how I missed this thread until now, but I wanted to say how sorry I am about losing your lab. It's so, so difficult to lose a member of the family like that. Really, pets are family members, and our pups are like our kids. We always refer to them as "the girls", not "the dogs".

We had a female black lab when I was a kid, and she lived to be 12, too. Sadly, she didn't have the chance to pass in her sleep. She suffered with arthritis, and got so bad in the end we had to put her to sleep. It was terribly sad.

Hopefully you will start smiling when you remember her, and not cry. It takes time, but it will happen. I promise.

[brownie]

Sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. It's tough. Our cat was 14 when she passed away during the day. I had been working in the basement for a few hours and she was gone when I went back upstairs. She had been sick, so it wasn't completely unexpected. It's tough but it does get easier to handle as time goes on.

[Disneymom4ever]

Thank you so much everyone, what a wonderful bunch of people here! Things are slowly getting back to routine here, there's just something missing, though, that's for sure. The boys are busy with end of the school year stuff, so they are keeping very busy. I guess that's a good thing. We don't talk about her too much, it's just hard right now. I know it will get easier as time goes on. I miss her so much! :( Thanks again, and everyone that's lost a pet, I'm so sorry. I'm sure they're all playing together right now, just waiting for us! :mickey:

[RalsFam]

I'm sorry for your loss. Our lab Tully Mars is 2. He is a definite member of the family. Prayers out for you and your family.
Joe

[Mickey'sGirl]

I am so sorry for you and your family, Lisa. Dogs are very special members of our family. What a peaceful way for her to pass, I would wish that for all of our pets.