Good bye, sweet Tristan

Yesterday we said good-bye to our dear Tristan. This is the worst part of owning pets.

A couple of weeks ago, our friend and photographer Deborah Wilson came to take some photos of our boy. I am so glad I have these gorgeous shots of him.

Tristan had been steadily declining for the past month, and in the past few days, he was finding it impossible to get up, and very hard to stay standing once he was up. We knew this was coming and probably would have helped him along last week, but our vet was away on vacation, and we wanted him to come to the farm to euthanize Tristan, so we waited until he was back.

Dr. Dave came out yesterday, and our boy had a very peaceful passing on the front porch with his head on  my lap and Gordon holding his paw. he was surrounded by a trio of his kitty friends.

 He was a Lab-Vizsla mix and we used to call him our noble Vizslador.

We adopted Tristan along with his "sister" Sophie in 2007 when his owner died in tragic circumstances. We lost Sophie in 2014 to hemangiosarcoma.

She was diagnosed a year after Tristan was also diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma. He had his spleen and a six-lb tumour removed, and we expected him to last maybe another three months.

Instead he kept going for over three years!

He suffered from arthritis for a long time, and finally it became too much for him to bear.

He was a one-of-a-kind sort of dog...

...we will miss him so much.

Yesterday his friend Luc brought him a honey cruller from Tim Hortons, something Luc often did for Tristan. You can see in this photo how tired Tristan was (even compared to the photos above, which were taken just a couple of weeks ago)...

Luc also built Tristan a beautiful coffin, and used his excavator to dig a hole in our woodlot for him. Then last night, Gordon and I went out with Luc and his partner (and our friend) Debbie to bury Tristan. Before we closed the lid, we all said good-bye to the old boy. I tucked the box of Sophie's ashes in next to him. Then we loaded him onto the back of the RTV and drove him out to his peaceful resting place in the woods.

We feel really lucky to have friends like Debbie and Luc. They both do so much for us, and their kindness towards Tristan in life and death is something I will never forget. Tristan especially loved Luc, who would often lure him along with a trail of M & Ms.

A little selfie yesterday while we waited for the vet.

He had the softest ears ever!

He could be such a goofball. And he loved certain cats, particularly Redford.

And he had the best smile!

Tristan, we will miss you so much. You were a connoisseur of crullers, a lover of Tim Hortons coffee cups, a chaser of squirrels (before arthritis slowed you down.) You were so joyful swimming in the river and the pond, chasing tennis balls, and just lying in the sun enjoying the warmth of everyday life. You had the best sense of humour... only you would eat a tear-drenched Kleenex as your last supper just before passing over, as Gordon and I cried in your fur. We will never have another dog quite like you. We love you Tristan, and hope that you are once again with Sophie, running through the fields and woods like you both used to, looking for squirrels and muskrats, sniffing the farm air, seeking out your next adventure, never knowing what might be just around the corner...

Tristan, our noble Vizslador. 2002 - 2016