Five years today he departed and I still think about him every single day.

Difficult not to I suppose seeing as he's my background wallpaper and also my avatar on here. Was a Friday that year as well. Still miss him and the walks we used to take together along the river. (">

http://i456.photobucket.com/albums/q...psguipz7oj.jpg

Picked up an 18" x 12" slab of polished granite yesterday so finally going to get a memorial stone sorted. Mate has recently bought a laser cut/etch machine so may be easier than my original idea of sandblasting the design onto it. If it goes well I may think about selling pet memorial stones. (">

Soppy cunt !

LoL. When it comes to animals yes I am. It's people I cant stand. :)

Hi
I feel the same about my Bobby, been gone now for many years but he gave me 16 wonderful years of friendship.
Feel you pain buddy
LS
Attachment 30418

Is that a sheep dog BigBird ??

I used to think this kind of thing was so soppy, but last year my girlfriend's dog had to be put to sleep.

I honestly haven't cried that much since my mother died, it's amazing hi how much emotion animals engine compared to humans.

Still miss him dearly nearly a year later.

When Taffy passed away I felt that people wouldn't understand how great was the loss I felt because you hear people say "it was only a dog", but then one day I saw a celebrity on ITV's This Morning describe how the loss of his dog hit him harder than when he lost his parents. I guess it depends on the bond you have together. Some people can have a dog for years and never really form a true bond. If you spend time doing things together like throwing a ball for the dog to chase after and going for walks, then you start forming a bond. Animals form bonds by playing together.

Glad to hear from people on here who feel the same as I do about the loss of a faithful companion.

There's a verse from the song Mr Bojangles that I can relate to:

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He danced for those at minstrel shows and county fairs throughout the south
He spoke through tears of 15 years how his dog and him traveled about
The dog up and died, he up and died
And after 20 years he still grieves
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I cant imaging not feeling the loss even after 20 years. (">

Yes piggzy. Taffy was a Border Collie.

Hi
Here is the current companion, although he is very good and I love him I have never had the bond I had with Bobby.
LS
Attachment 30420

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lou_smorals

Hi
Here is the current companion, although he is very good and I love him I have never had the bond I had with Bobby.
LS
Attachment 30420

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Looks like a nice friendly little fella. What breed is he? Looks like he has collie in him but cant quite make it out because I cant see his ears properly. How long have you had him?

I think its the same with animals as it is with people - With some a strong bond develops within a short period of time and with others the bond may take years to develop and will only get so far. Also if you have had a really strong bond with a previous canine companion then its possible that there is something holding you back. Somewhere in your mind and without you being aware of it there is a feeling of guilt that is telling you that if you form as strong a bond with this fella, that you are somehow being unfaithful or forgetting about your previous companion. That is one of the reasons I didn't get another dog. I didn't feel I could form a proper bond with another dog. Its only in the last year I have felt that I could have another dog - but it wouldn't be fair to the cat I have now who acts more like a dog than a cat. He follows me around, loves his belly rubbed (which many cats don't like) and always comes when I call him.

The cat turned up 9 months after Taffy passed away. Through the local vet I managed to find the owner who lived at least three miles away. When they took the cat back home I had a feeling the cat would be back even though I hadn't been feeding it or letting it into the house. I even told the girlfriend that I give it three days and the cat will be back. Two days later he's back and lying on Taffy's grave. Was he trying to tell me something because I also found out later that the cat was born in the middle of June the previous year which was a few days after Taffy passed away - Coincidence or ??? Maybe in a way Taffy is still with me.... or I could just be plain nuts for even considering it. :) (">

He and Bobby before him were 100% border collie , he has his ears down as he is scared getting his photo taken, my son says the dog told him that he thought I was stealing his soul lol, he is nearly ten and the photo was taken this week, we got him at 10 weeks.
Ls

The Mrs and Kids begged for a dog for years.
All the promises of "You will NEVER have to pick up it's poo, you will NEVER have to walk it, You won't even know it's there"

After about 2 or 3 years of this I finally caved. We first had a Greyhound which sadly died after eating raisins (never knew but it's true.. dogs are allergic to em)
Now have a Patterdale.

Guess who walks it and picks up it's shit. You got it in 1.

The dogs a right annoying cunt too. You go out for 10 minutes and it acts like it hasn't seen you in years. It gets itself so worked up and excited on pretty much every outing that it ends up spraying diarrhoea all over the joint.

Does my fucking head in. Should have stuck to my guns :-)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lou_smorals

He and Bobby before him were 100% border collie , he has his ears down as he is scared getting his photo taken, my son says the dog told him that he thought I was stealing his soul lol, he is nearly ten and the photo was taken this week, we got him at 10 weeks.
Ls

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I love Border Collies. Not just because Taffy was one. I always preferred them even as a child. I think they are very good looking dogs. I guessed his (you haven't mentioned his name) ears were down because he was possibly a bit nervous when he was having his photo taken. Border Collies are highly intelligent which also makes them nervous or anxious because they worry more. Bit like humans really - Dopey people don't worry about anything - ask piggzy; he hasn't got a care in the world; well apart from his dog spraying liquid shit all over the place. :) (">

Quote:

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Originally Posted by piggzy

The Mrs and Kids begged for a dog for years.
All the promises of "You will NEVER have to pick up it's poo, you will NEVER have to walk it, You won't even know it's there"

After about 2 or 3 years of this I finally caved. We first had a Greyhound which sadly died after eating raisins (never knew but it's true.. dogs are allergic to em)
Now have a Patterdale.

Guess who walks it and picks up it's shit. You got it in 1.

The dogs a right annoying cunt too. You go out for 10 minutes and it acts like it hasn't seen you in years. It gets itself so worked up and excited on pretty much every outing that it ends up spraying diarrhoea all over the joint.

Does my fucking head in. Should have stuck to my guns :-)

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Sorry to hear about the Grayhound. Raisins are dried grapes and grapes are a total no no for dogs. Same with chocolate and a list of other foods they shouldn't be given. Worth looking it up on google. Taffy was ill once after my daughter gave him a couple of pieces of chocolate. Vet said he could have died.

Cant help laughing at the rest of your post. Never met you but I got this vision of a fat bastard on his knees scraping shit off the floor and walls. :) (">

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigBird

Sorry to hear about the Grayhound. Raisins are dried grapes and grapes are a total no no for dogs. Same with chocolate and a list of other foods they shouldn't be given. Worth looking it up on google. Taffy was ill once after my daughter gave him a couple of pieces of chocolate. Vet said he could have died.

Cant help laughing at the rest of your post. Never met you but I got this vision of a fat bastard on his knees scraping shit off the floor and walls. :) (">

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Yeah we were told by the VET that the varieties of grapes you get for example for wine. Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc it is down to these sub types and some are highly toxic and some have no effect at all.
Obviously the packet of raisins doesn't tell you the grape variety it comes from so it is a lottery.

The wrong grape and it is kidney failure for dogs.

We added a load of raisins to the kids breakfasts. Went out for a couple of hours, came back and the dog had helped herself to the packet. Lesson learnt, never left em out again.

So many people have said to me over the years since.. "Well I feed my dogs raisins all the time" as if I am talking shit. All it takes is that wrong variety and your dog is brown bread. Not worth the risk is it.

It's just my luck this fucking Patterdale hates raisins. :-) (Joking before you all start)

Hi
He be looking enough collie for you now m8?
LS

Attachment 30422

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lou_smorals

Hi
He be looking enough collie for you now m8?
LS

Attachment 30422

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That's a really nice photo. Very similar to Taffy with his long hair. Thanks for sharing it. Will add it to my collection of Border Collie images. (">

I have guilt on my experience of our Springer Spaniel who was put down last year. We had him from a puppy when me and the Mrs moved from home to live 100 miles away from our families in our 1st home. He was our baby, where he gave company to my partner when I worked late in the evenings, and she socialised taking him to gun dog training which benefitted us all. The joy I got from playing, walking and just talking and looking into his eyes can't be described. We lived on the very edge of a housing estate and had fields with a river running past which he loved, often drawing crowds as he threw himself into the river from many varieties of height where his energy for retrieving a ball or stick never diminished.

6 years on we had moved back to the area where are families are, where we have plenty of fields but had to be very careful when they had livestock or horses in them. He had started to struggle with arthritis when we went out for walks where he limped for days after and looked very sorry for himself afterwards. Also his excited barking when we set out for a walk led to a few letters from the council about noise disturbance with a disgruntled neighbour over exaggerating; with complaints made to any dog owner in the close proximity. Our working hours changed and we had started a family then also where we both had little time for him as we'd had in the past.

Buddy got to 11 years old when I started to come home to find luminous coloured shit sprayed up the walls, all over the floor, over the kids toys etc, which happened over 3 days. He wasn't eating but was drinking which is meant to be a good sign but we were concerned for him and decided we wouldn't wait any longer before taking him to the vets. My joking parting shot to the Mrs was 'don't bring him back!', mainly in jest after spending hours over those days cleaning the mess up!

Well that's what happened, he never came back from that trip to the vets. I didn't get to say goodbye or even give him a pat or stroke before he left and my mrs wasn't prepared for having to make that decision when she took him there. I couldn't recommend a dog highly enough as a pet/companion but only if you know that for the entirety of the dogs life you can give the time and love that they deserve.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dainese

I have guilt on my experience of our Springer Spaniel who was put down last year. We had him from a puppy when me and the Mrs moved from home to live 100 miles away from our families in our 1st home. He was our baby, where he gave company to my partner when I worked late in the evenings, and she socialised taking him to gun dog training which benefitted us all. The joy I got from playing, walking and just talking and looking into his eyes can't be described. We lived on the very edge of a housing estate and had fields with a river running past which he loved, often drawing crowds as he threw himself into the river from many varieties of height where his energy for retrieving a ball or stick never diminished.

6 years on we had moved back to the area where are families are, where we have plenty of fields but had to be very careful when they had livestock or horses in them. He had started to struggle with arthritis when we went out for walks where he limped for days after and looked very sorry for himself afterwards. Also his excited barking when we set out for a walk led to a few letters from the council about noise disturbance with a disgruntled neighbour over exaggerating; with complaints made to any dog owner in the close proximity. Our working hours changed and we had started a family then also where we both had little time for him as we'd had in the past.

Buddy got to 11 years old when I started to come home to find luminous coloured shit sprayed up the walls, all over the floor, over the kids toys etc, which happened over 3 days. He wasn't eating but was drinking which is meant to be a good sign but we were concerned for him and decided we wouldn't wait any longer before taking him to the vets. My joking parting shot to the Mrs was 'don't bring him back!', mainly in jest after spending hours over those days cleaning the mess up!

Well that's what happened, he never came back from that trip to the vets. I didn't get to say goodbye or even give him a pat or stroke before he left and my mrs wasn't prepared for having to make that decision when she took him there. I couldn't recommend a dog highly enough as a pet/companion but only if you know that for the entirety of the dogs life you can give the time and love that they deserve.

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I know how that guilty feeling very well. You have to learn to focus on the positive which is that you gave him 11 years of a happy family life. I felt guilt after Taffy passed away - Did I walk him enough? should I have spent even more time with him? Its a natural reaction when you lose someone you care about. The very fact that you feel guilt shows you cared about him very much. And I guarantee you that he would have known that.

Its only after Taffy passed away and when looking at Border Collie videos on YouTube that I discovered Treibball which is a herding game for dogs, and with Taffy being a Border Collie he would have absolutely loved it. I still feel guilty that I hadn't looked into herding games for dogs when he was young. The guilt will pass or at least get easier. Try not to focus on the regrets but focus on the positive memories because Buddy was obviously a positive influence in your life. (">

Treibball:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBJ9DVp9dyM

Slightly separate it looks like me Cat is going to have to have its leg amputated :-( I not sure if he will have a good life as a 3 wheeler? They done Biopsy still waiting for results but if cancerous then legs a goner but might have to take off anyhow as tumour cancerous or not is too big to remover really :-(

Anyone have animals which had surgery like this and how did it effect them, lookin online cats are really adaptable and most owners say it was the right decision to amputate.