Dog owners: Give your friend a hug tonight...

***Update on Lily from 7/22/09***

Well, the unthinkable has happened. At 2:55 pm on Tuesday, July 21st, Lily's surgeon called me from the operating room to tell me that her leg was broken much more severely than originally thought. It was so bad that they only had one other avenue of repair but that the odds of her making it through the recovery phase were not goot at all. The fact that she was 200 lbs. was just going to be too much of a burden during recovery. So with a lump in my throat I asked her surgeon to please stop where they were and to make Lily comfortable while my wife and I made one last drive to Stillwater.

We drove the 1 1/2 to OSU in silence and uncontrollable sobbing. Neither of us had ever been through something like this before. And since we don't have any children it was as if we were losing a child.

At 5:30 pm we arrove in Stillwater and waited for them to wheel Lily into our "Reflections" room so that we could spend some last moments with her. She was barely awake from her surgery but we think she knew that we were there with her. We spent lots of time stroking her and remembering so many special experiences with her. Mostly she just kept her eyes shut and tried to sleep, but every once in awhile she would open her beautiful Tiger Eye eyes and look at me. When we were as ready as we could be we asked her doctor to give her the injections that would finally release her from her pain. At 6:20 pm Lily passed away peacefully at the age of 6 1/2.

In the roughly nine hours that have passed my wife and I have cried more than I ever imagined possible. Lily was the first animal in our lives that truly made us better people. The unconditional love that we had with her and vice versa was simply extraordinary. To us, Lily was in every way a child and the loss that we feel right now is overwhelming.

My wife had thoughtfully put together a couple of scrapbooks of Lily over the years. At random times I would get them out and look at pictures of Lily as just a baby or a young woman and they always brought a smile to my face. We never took any of our time with Lily for granted. It was always understood that with a dog this large her time here would be more limited than smaller dogs. Because of that, we always realized how lucky that we were to have a dog like Lily. And we gained so much love and enjoyment from our 6 1/2 years with her. It just doesn't seem possible that she is gone.

Thank you once again for your kind words and thoughts during these past few days. I don't even know any of you personally but it has been comforting to here from those of you that understand what we are going through. The pain of this loss is simply more than I could have ever imagined.

Below are some additional photos of our precious girl. She was a loving dog and a great friend and we will miss her for the rest of our lives.

We love you, Lily.

 

RainbowsBridge.com
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 vigor. 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....

iam so sorry for yous loss .for lily

 

So sorry for your loss, she is such a beautiful dog.

 

my condolences. breaks my heart to read this.

RIP. Lily

 

Sorry for your loss.

 

I am so sorry man.

RIP Lily

 

I'm so sorry for your loss. I started to read your update this morning at work... I had to stop...

She was a beautiful girl.

 

im so sorry to hear about lily.

 

best wishes on lilies recovory. hugs gave to all dogs

 

I am so sorry for you're loss, i know how it is like to loose a pet especially a family member like that. We lost Tiger to a coyote after 10 1/2 years with us, she was in so much pain that we had to put her to sleep also :[ I'm pretty sure Lily is at Rainbow Bridge playing with all the other dogs having a grand time chewing on everything they couldnt imaginable! RIP LILY

 

My sincerest. I have been in your situation and it's hard to believe but time does heal. When my wife and I said goodbye to our first dog it was quite the emotional experience. It did make us feel better to remember all the good times we had and that we needed to ease his pain. After that we swore off owning another dog(They actually own us more or less, don't they?) because we couldn't bear the loss. Six months later we found the perfect canine companion. Then we added a friend.

The moral is while you are hurting now it will get better and you will always remember the good times you had with Lily and I hope you have future good times with another addition to your family.

 

Very sorry for your loss, Lily was a beautiful dog.

 

Lily was such a special dog. We always knew during our 6 1/2 years together how lucky we were to have found her. In some ways, the fact that we never took her for granted has made the pain of losing her run much deeper. She always provided endless amounts of joy in our lives and could always bring a smile to our faces at the end of a rotten day.

The sense of loss that my wife and I feel is overwhelming. Our other dog, Brooklyn, also seems lost without his Lily. He has always had her by his side and now he is lost without her. As bad as my wife and I feel, we feel equally as bad for Brooklyn. He must now spend his days alone while we are gone to work and that is something that is completely foreign to him.

I know that in time this pain will ease and that we will see brighter days, but for now the ocean of sorrow feels endlessly deep. We put so much of ourselves into Lily and she gave an equal amount of herself back. The bond between humans and a dog could not have been greater.

Thanks to all of you who have taken the time to offer kind words and thoughts. It is comforting to know that other people understand what it means to lose an animal that has become an integral part of your life.