I had Nick for 13 years, he was about 16 when I had to say goodbye. He was a happy, enthusiastic, loving pet. He always was there to listen or lay his head in my lap. The last year I had to lift his hindquarters up the 2 steps into the house. He never acted like he hurt, but I know he must have been in some pain. He started falling down more often. He had never had an accident in the house, but the last 6 months he would lose feces when he tried to stand up--I just cleaned up after him. Finally, he could not control his bladder or hardly get up at all.

The last night that we had together, I got him KFC chicken strips and ice cream. I had always been quite careful of his diet, but now he could enjoy anything. In his younger years, he had eaten an entire pot roast, a loaf of homebaked bread, and most of a turkey that was cooling in the garage. He could levitate up on his hind legs and snatch food off the counter, in absolute silence.

He now resides in a heart shaped box in my bedroom, next to his old pal, Barney(he passed in 2002). My old buddy is no longer in pain, but I miss him terribly. I have a pug, Frankie, who also misses him.

Judith K.