Seth came into our lives just under 1 year ago by way of an adoption through the Oldies But Goodies Cocker Rescue (he would have been with us exactly 1 year on August 31st).  He was approximately 9-10 years old and had led a very difficult life of neglect and abandonment.  I know some probably thought we were a bit silly in selecting a dog that was older, but we reasoned that our last Cockers had lived up to 18 years of age and Seth was a very outgoing egregious little guy so we had no problem taking a chance on him.  Truth be told, even knowing that Seth was entering his final year, I do not believe I would have traded any of the precious time that we had with him. 

Seth wasted no time making himself at home.  He was pretty needy initially and howled something fierce when left alone, as though he feared he was being abandoned again.  He got a bit better about this because obviously we kept coming back home to him.  Seth fit in so well with the other dogs and in our daily lives that it seems unthinkable that it was under a year that he was with us and yet made such a huge impact on our lives

There are many things that I will miss about him.  I miss the way he would steal bits of Tobey's food.  The way he would sleep curled around my mother's head.  The way he would happily rub/roll himself all over people and things (i.e., clothes, the bed, etc.) grunting like a character in one of those awful Japanese cartoons like Speed Racer.  I used to tell people that he was rubbing his funk all over everything, so in effect he was "funking" them.  I nicknamed him J. Filbert Funk based on this habit.  No matter how badly he had been treated by people in his past, he was always friendly and open to giving new people a good funk.  He was the only one of our dogs who would make his way upstairs to my bedroom (looking like a burrito on feet trudging up the stairs) and endure the heat to visit me.  Many mornings I would be awakened by a scratch at the bedroom door and a soft whine to be let in, which I did no matter how dead tired I was.  I believe I will miss his visits most of all as they were always a highlight of my day. 

As some of you know, a few short weeks ago Seth became quite ill seemingly overnight and began having problems breathing.  Initially no one could agree on exactly what was wrong, but he required a few days in an oxygen cage while they figured it out.  They finally seemed to settle on the probability that it was cancer, but no one was sure without performing seriously invasive tests that had the potential of leaving him much worse off.  We decided against putting him through such an ordeal.  After close to a week, however, Seth surprised everyone, including the vets, by rallying and coming out of the oxygen.  He was released and returned home to us.  No one could get over how wonderful he looked and acted, and we truly hoped that either the diagnosis was wrong or there had been some sort of remission with the steroid therapy.  We had a wonderful week of a healthy-seeming Seth back home with us. Unfortunately on Sunday morning Seth had a relapse with his breathing problems.  Faced with the fact that he may not come out of oxygen again and the only therapy had apparently worked the only improvement it was going to, we made the incredibly difficult choice to put Seth to sleep.  Thankfully, we had a really wonderful caring vet who was overseeing his care and had a great rapport with Seth (Dr. Hlodia had nicknamed him "Her Little Bug") who really did her best to help us through everything.  We stayed with him until the end because I could not bear leaving him to face his final moments alone after the abandonment that had filled much of his life.  I wanted him to know that someone was with willing to stay with him until the end. 

My only regret is that our paths did not cross sooner.  I am nearly inconsolable with grief that our little friend who knew little but contempt from people for the majority of his life would be taken from us so soon after finding himself placed in a loving home, but I take some solace from the fact that we did meet and the time we did have together.  And if things had to end up this way, my only hope is that Seth knew how much of a valued member of our family he had become in such a short period of time and was aware of how much we absolutely loved him.  We will never forget him.  This is my tribute to Seth and the joy he brought into our lives.  We will miss him terribly - my irreplaceable little boy. 

Other than to pay tribute to Seth, I also want to attempt to use this opportunity to help the charity organization that helped bring Seth into our lives.  The Oldies But Goodies Cocker Rescue group is a non-profit organization made up of many animal lovers who tirelessly give of their time and money, and work overtime to make sure each dog is placed in just the right home.  I know Seth spent a good deal of time with them, particularly with one of their volunteers, Jackie, and had some earlier medical treatment paid for through their efforts.  If anyone who had met Seth and been touched by his loving manner, or is even touched by my rambling remembrances of our brief time together, would be interested in donating to them in Seth’s memory, you can find their link at  http://www.cockerspanielrescue.com/fundraising/fundraising.htm You can donate as little as you want - every little bit helps - and you can even indicate exactly what you would like that donation to be used for.