Another heartbreaking good-bye.

Although my little Dante was not a Sheltie...his deeply bonded "brother" Dakota was and Dakota sadly joined the Sheltie Angels last summer...so I hope I am not out of line in posting of Dante's passing here among the Sheltie angels.

On the 5th of this month our precious little black Pommie boy, Dante, left us. He and Dakota come to us as fosters at 6 years old, they had been together from the time they were only 7 weeks old. As time went by no applications came in from people who wanted both of them, some wanted Dante, others wanted Dakota and I knew that to separate them would be horribly cruel so in the end we chose to welcome them into our family so they could stay together.

Dante was small in size but huge in heart and personality. His all encompassing love of life and everyone and everything in it was boundless. 20 months ago an ultrasound showed significant necrotic tissue in his pancreas and a small tumor on his liver...our vets gave him only 4-6 months to live. Dante fought fiercely to hold onto the life he loved so much and he beat the odds by 14 months, but sadly quality time ran out for our precious little boy last week. I suppose there is no such thing as a 100% perfect dog, but Dante came as close to being that as possible...he was a joy and never gave us a moment's trouble in the 8 years we were blessed to have him...neither did his "brother" Dakota. Both were such incredibly gentle loving souls.

When Dakota died last summer I had him cremated so his ashes could be buried with "his" little Dante when Dante's time came. I miss them both terribly and always will. Nothing can ever take away the heartbreak of their deaths, but at least I know they are now resting side by side in peace...together once again.
Trini