Saying Goodbye to Augie

Our sweet boy left us on Saturday, February 11th, 2017. This is his story.

Augie had been feeling fine in the beginning of the week, but then on Wednesday began to act a little sick. Nothing major; just sleeping more than usual and maybe a bit lethargic. On Thursday, he didn't want to eat his breakfast. For a golden, that is quite worrisome. We think Ti knew something was wrong, because he stuck close to his brother's side.

On Thursday Augie started to pant a lot, and his breathing took on a ragged quality.

We were getting more concerned, although his nose was running a bit, so we were hoping it was simply a doggy cold.

Friday it was off to the vet's. I don't think he really wanted to go, as it's not his favorite place, but he was a trooper. The vet did a brief exam and said, "This is not good." My heart sank. I was expecting to hear he had a respiratory infection, maybe even pneumonia as a worst case scenario. As the vet took him to the back for more tests, I called my husband on the phone and whispered, "This is bad." That was all I could say.

X-rays showed that Augie's lungs were full of cancer and he was in very bad shape. Wow, we were so shocked and devastated. He had been acting fine only a few days before. How was that even possible? The vet suggested letting him go right then, but the quickness was too much for my heart to bear. So he gave Augie a few shots to make him more comfortable, but we needed to bring him back the next morning.

More time to say goodbye was great and heart wrenching at the same time. His sister came home from college, and the grandparents stopped by to say goodbye. Ti knew. He just wanted to be with his brother.

I slept on the couch that night, next to Augie. Just wanted to make sure he was alright. A few times he cried in his sleep--not dreaming, but actual crying. That's the kind of thing that crushes your soul in the worst way. In the morning, we petted our sweet baby.

His appointment time was at 11. When we got into the room, he wanted a cookie from the vet's counter. One last cookie, as if to say, "Yep, I'm still a golden."

There was a nice soft blanket for him to lay down on, which he happily accepted.

And then he seemed soooo sick. He could barely stay awake, but we kissed him and held his paw and told him we loved him.

His passing was very peaceful.

The era of Augie Doggy has ended, but we still have our memories, and our love for him, as well as over a decade of photos and videos. We want to thank the thousands of people who sent messages to us on our Facebook post, as well as privately and through cards and letters.

We'd like to give special thank yous to our friends who made donations in Augie's name! Traci, Doug, and Newton donated to Leader Dogs for the Blind, Liz Watling donated to the Michigan Humane Society, Joan Huddleston donated to the BEES Elephant Foundation in Thailand, and Bridget, Seka, and Ace donated to the Morris Animal Foundation's Golden Retriever Lifetime Study!

Our friends Liz, Jeremy, and Ramsey sent a cookie too!

A special place in our hearts is also reserved for this amazing drawing, created for us by John Rasmussen:

Our wonderful friend, Bobbie Greco, sent us this beautiful bracelet, from Three Scoops of Vanilla:

And the owner of the company, Erin, also included a special gift:

So beautiful and special! Thank you!

Our Augie doggy will never be forgotten. For those of you who knew him, even only online, we hope he touched your hearts in some small way. And of course Ti is still here to carry on Augie's legacy! Please stick around and follow his antics. He's a good boy too. :)