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In tribute to To Socks, our friendThanks to Claude |
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| We went looking for you in March 1999 to give Clint, our other Setter, a playmate. Clint was your role model, your "big brother". For eight years you were inseparable and were both wonderful companions. Our children and we were all happy to have two such close companions. On February 27, 2007, your brother left us suddenly. And you've never been happy since. I'd take you to work every day, and you'd stand at the foot of my desk. This summer you had a bit of a cough; nothing to worry about, we thought. You bathed in the deep blue sea and your behavior seemed normal to us, except for a weight loss that we blamed on your permanent sadness. In September you were treated with antibiotics, and when the treatment failed, our vet undertook a series of tests. In mid-October, the verdict was in: lung cancer with metastases, palliative treatment. I tried alternative treatments without really believing in them. You fought like a good dog. Eight days ago, at a family reunion, you were very happy to see your grandmother again, but something incredible happened: while we were talking, tears fell from your eyes. You've been fighting all week, but you're getting weaker by the day. Last night, November 9, you refused to eat, got up with great difficulty and went to bed outside on the grass. With great difficulty we brought you inside, and you lay down gasping for breath. I had to make the decision I'd been putting off, and our vet came to put an end to the ordeal. Socks, you were an extraordinary dog; you were in Clint's shadow, but Clint's departure revealed an animal as intelligent as he was sensitive. I sincerely hope you'll play together again. Goodbye my Socks. |
English (United Kingdom)