I had to bury my bud today

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Most sincere condolences. I roomed off and on, and played in bands with one of my best friends in KC. He adopted a white German Sheppard from a friend of his, and that dog was the "house dog" to about 20 different people over the years.

I decided to go by his house one night, out of the blue, for shits and giggles. When I got to the door I heard our buddy barking, but he wasn't running to the door per his usual MO. I knew right away something was wrong.
I went inside, and sure enough; he was laid out on the floor. His hips had gone bad, he was getting old, he had some major problems with his digestive tract by that point, and he was hopped up on "doggy painkillers".
I stayed and had dinner with my friend. After dinner( and MUCH booze )we took him outside to let him do his business. He could still walk, but it wasn't easy for him to do. All of the houses near westport are built on steep inclines and have steps from the sidewalk to the floor level and then more steps up to the porch.
I was doing pretty good until he started showing difficulty getting up that incline. I walked back over to him and urged him on, and when he finally made it up to the top; I absolutely lost it.
Of all the people that had come and gone in that dog's life, I was the only one aside from my friend who spent real time with him, taking him for monster long walks, throwing the ball around in the yard and in the park, and just enjoying having him around and in my life.
I've had, and have, family members and friends who will never get that level of sorrow out of me.
I found out that he had died a couple of days later, and I was really grateful that I had that chance to see him and say goodbye. Still am.