Those of us with pets know that one day the inevitable will happen, we will lose them.
I had two dogs, Tucker and Sunshine, brother and sister that I have had from when they were 6 months old who recently I had to put down – first Tucker then 5 weeks later Sunshine.
What was hard was that Tucker went downhill really quickly. Within 24hrs he went from hobbling around the yard to not being able to move and looking visibly upset – the happy wag in his tail had stopped. The decision to take him to the vets was an easy one but I think I can honestly say that having to talk to the vet and them have him put down in front of me was one of the hardest things that I have done / experienced. Totally heart breaking.
With Sunshine it was a little easier due to the simple fact I knew it was going to happen. For a week her health had been declining until it got to the stage when there was no other option. That aside it was still a heart-breaking moment and one that added to the grief I was still feeling for Tucker.
I could write pages on my dogs, what they meant to me and my family, how they helped with my health, the joy they brought to my life, being my companions while I worked at home and so much more, but I think what is important to me is the paragraph below.
The struggle.
I know it would help to speak to someone about how I feel and dealing with grief and in essence this is what Smoking Hot Dad is trying to create – a community where dad’s can share feelings, thoughts, help each other out etc but for some reason I am finding it difficult to do this.
Strange thing is that I did speak to some of the other Smoking Hot Dad’s about this before as they have gone through the same experience, but nothing actually prepares you for it.
Maybe time is the best healer or maybe our dad’s together tomorrow will give me the opportunity to express my feelings and talk to someone about this.
RIP my little shadows.
