My son's shadow

Discussion in 'Anything Goes' started by tinkerinWstuff, Dec 16, 2013.

  1. tinkerinWstuff

    tinkerinWstuff Administrator Staff Member

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    We said goodbye to our friend Max today. He was a gentle soul and the best friend I could have hoped for during 12yrs of my life. That's two dogs this year and the house will be awefully quiet.

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  2. Hey its me

    Hey its me New Member

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    So damn sad.. but looks like you gave him a great life, of 12 years. And that's all you can do.
     
  3. zoom-zoom

    zoom-zoom Member

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    Your dog certainly looks as though he had a good life and for the size of dog a fairly long one at 12 years old. I'm sure you'll hear the putter patter of paws behind you for some time to come, and as long as the memory is there, the dog will never really be gone. Your son may be young but I'm sure all the memories will be great I'm sure.

    My my wife and I had to have one of our miniature daschunds put down earlier this year and she was only 5. She very suddenly came down with an auto immune infection that started to destroy her red blood cells. The doctors figured there was a good possibility that there was a cancerous tumor in her spleen as well. After much deliberation we decided it was in Cali's best interest to end her suffering as the chances of her surviving spleen removal were very poor according to the vet. We found it vey hard as she was exactly the same age as our son Liam and they shared the same birthday as well. We got her as a puppy and she was certainly my sons favorite.

    Thankfully your son is still young enough that the loss may hurt for a time but he will get past the loss quickly. You on the other hand may suffer for a bit longer. Very sorry for your loss Tink and I/We wish you all the best.
     
  4. Allyance

    Allyance Insider

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    View attachment 25105
    My thoughts are with you and to those us who have lost our best friends.
    Like those who don't ride, they will never understand why we ride.
    For those who have never had a pet, they will never understand the loss.
     
  5. duccmann

    duccmann Member

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    So sad bud, sorry for your loss. My Labs 13 and really tired...arthritus, cataracts ... that will be one messed up day that I don't want to look forward too. NO ONE GETS OOT ALIVE . At least your son had his buddy for a short time, and he will never forget him ever......RIP Max
     
  6. tinkerinWstuff

    tinkerinWstuff Administrator Staff Member

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    Thanks for the kind posts.

    He actually made it over 13yrs but I was blessed with him for his last 12.

    Next time your dog or kid does something to piss you off, give 'em a free pass and a hug in honor of Max.
     
  7. Metallican525

    Metallican525 New Member

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    That sucks Tink, sorry to you and the family.
     
  8. VFR Love

    VFR Love New Member

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    Right on and will do.
    I know your grief.
    My beloved shep mix gave me 11 great years before moving on. That was 15 years ago.
    I hope it's ok I share a pic of my Sandy girl...
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    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     
  9. Mrboss

    Mrboss New Member

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    Don´t like. Sorry for your lost.
     
  10. TOE CUTTER

    TOE CUTTER Mullet Man

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    I'm sorry Tink, saying goodbye to friends is the worst.
     
  11. marriedman

    marriedman New Member

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    There is nothing like losing a pet that was truly a part of your family. My sincerest condolences.
     
  12. OOTV

    OOTV Insider

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    Most people who don't have or never had a dog, or any animal for that matter, do not now how much they become part of our lives and family and are not just "pets". They really are family members and losing them hurts just as much as losing any other member of your family. Many of them would sacrifice their lives to protect us and never even think twice about doing it, unconditional love! RIP Max! Sorry for your loss Tink.
     
  13. tyarosevich

    tyarosevich New Member

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    That's rough man, especially that shot of (I assume) your kid lying on top of him as a baby. The ones that live a good long life are the hardest to see go, I think. No doubt about it, they become a part of your family and the best ones are irreplaceable. Sorry for your loss, but it sounds like Max had a great run and that's all we can ask for and all we can give!
     
  14. mofo

    mofo New Member

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    Is hard to say goodbye to a family member. I'm facing the fact that my dog is getting too old, it's gonna be tough.
     
  15. diVeFR

    diVeFR New Member

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    Yep my puppy is starting to show signs of his age (9) Im going to hate the day his day comes...sorry for your loss
     
  16. Pliskin

    Pliskin New Member

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    What can be said that hasn't already been said? I'm sorry for your loss, Tink. People that aren't "dog people" just don't get it. I know this sounds all wrong, but as my Rhodesian Ridgeback (now 10 years) enters her autumn years, and my father does the same, for some reason that I can't understand it hurts me more to think about the loss of my puppy.

    For those that don't know the story of man's best friend, here it is:

    *********************

    Senator George Graham Vest won a court battle and the hearts of dog lovers everywhere when he paid his famous tribute to the dog during the 1870 Burden vs. Hornsby court case in Warrensburg.

    The “eulogy to the dog” won the case for Charles Burden whose favorite hound, Old Drum, was shot by a neighbor & brother-in-law, Leonidas Hornsby, who had sworn to shoot the first sheep-killing dog that came onto his land. Although Hornsby had hunted with Drum and acknowledged him to be one of the best hunting dogs he had ever seen, he also suspected that Drum was the dog that had been killing his sheep. Hornsby, carried out his threat when one night a dog was found prowling in his yard. That dog was Old Drum.

    Burden immediately sued Hornsby for damages, and the trial quickly became one of the strangest in the history of this area of the country. Each man was determined to win the case. After several trials at magistrate court and district court, punctuated by appeals by the loser in each trial, the case finally reached the Supreme Court of Missouri. The award of $50 in damages to Burden for the loss of his favorite hunting dog was upheld.

    The many trials involved prominent attorneys on both sides. David Nation, whose wife Carrie made a name for herself in the Temperance Movement, appeared for Burden in one of the early encounters. The last jury trial, held September 23, 1870, in what is now the Johnson County Historical Society museum, featured the most prominent lawyers.

    Hornsby, the defendant, was represented by the firm of Crittenden & Cockrell. Tom Crittenden had been Lt. Col. of the 7th Cavalry, Missouri State Militia (Federal), in the ‘late unpleasantness’. He was to go on to the Governership of Missouri in 1880; Tom Crittenden issued the reward that motivated the Ford brothers to kill Jesse James. His partner was Francis Marion Cockrell, recently a Brigadier General commanding the 1st Missouri Brigade (CSA), one of the hardest-fighting units in the Confederate Army of Tennessee (see my Civil War bibliography for more on his history). Cockrell later spent 5 terms in the U.S. Senate.

    Appearing for Burden was the Sedalia-based firm of Phillips & Vest. John Phillips had been a Union Colonel & Tom Crittenden’s immediate superior; he was later a congressman and a federal judge. George Graham Vest had been a strong secessionist, having written Missouri’s Articles of Secession while in the state legislature in 1861. His war service was in Richmond representing Missouri in the Confederate House of Representatives and Senate. He later served in the U.S. Senate for 4 terms.

    Perhaps because he spent the war talking rather than fighting, George Vest was known as one of the finest extemporaneous speakers in an age when the spoken word was the most important means of communication for most people. Vest’s closing argument in the Old Drum case, known as his “eulogy to the dog,” won the case and became a classic speech, recognized by William Safire as one of the best of the millennium.

    Through the direction of the Warrensburg Chamber of Commerce and coordinated efforts by many dog lovers across the country, Old Drum was immortalized in a statue on the Johnson County Courthouse lawn in Warrensburg on September 23, 1958. Previously, in 1947, Fred Ford of Blue Springs placed a monument to Old Drum near a crossing of Big Creek where Old Drum’s body was found. If you’re interested in exploring the Old Drum sites, check our our Old Drum Tour.

    While no record was kept of the last half of Vest’s tribute to a dog, the first portion has fortunately been preserved. It was this speech that originated the saying, “A man’s best friend is his dog.”


    George Graham Vest speaking:

    “Gentlemen of the jury, the best friend a man has in this world may turn against him and become his enemy. His son or daughter whom he has reared with loving care may prove ungrateful. Those who are nearest and dearest to us — those whom we trust with our happiness and good name — may become traitors in their faith. The money that a man has he may lose. It flies away from him, perhaps when he needs it most. A man’s reputation may be sacrificed in a moment of ill-considered action. The people who are prone to fall on their knees to do us honor when success is with us may be the first to throw the stone of malice when failure settles its cloud upon our heads. The one absolute, unselfish friend that man can have in this selfish world — the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous — is his dog.

    “Gentlemen of the jury, a man’s dog stands by him in prosperity and poverty, in health and sickness. He will sleep on the cold ground, where the wintry winds blow, and the snow drives fiercely, if only he can be near his master’s side. He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer; he will lick the wounds and sores that come in encounter with the roughness of the world. He guards the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince. When all other friends desert, he remains. When riches take wings and reputation falls to pieces, he is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey through the heavens.

    “If fortune drives the master forth an outcast in the world, friendless and homeless, the faithful dog asks no higher privilege than that of accompanying him to guard against danger, to fight against his enemies. And when the last scene of all comes, and death takes the master in its embrace, and his body is laid away in the cold ground, no matter if all other friends pursue their way, there by his graveside will the noble dog be found, his head between his paws, his eyes sad but open in alert watchfulness, faithful and true even to death.”

    *************


    RIP Max. You'll be missed, but never forgotten.
     
  17. Gator

    Gator Insider

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    Max was a beautiful dog. Sorry for your loss. How old is your son now?
     
  18. Arnzinator

    Arnzinator New Member

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    Deepest condolences to you & your families loss.
     
  19. Outboard John

    Outboard John New Member

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    ........:sad:
     
  20. tinkerinWstuff

    tinkerinWstuff Administrator Staff Member

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    2-1/2

    He hasn't really asked for Max yet or noticed he's missing. We've been working to keep him occupied and his cheerful nature helps us right now. Hopefully the nerves won't be so raw when we have to let him know.
     
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