Wednesday, July 27, 2011

The loss of Bristol

On July sixteenth, 2011, I had to say goodbye to my beloved guide dog and faithful companion Bristol. After his cancer diagnosis in early June, his health rapidly declined. His vet had told us that the cancer was aggressive and he was in the advanced stages of the cancer. His nose bleeds kept getting worse and more frequent. We had to make the difficult decision to let him go on July fifteenth when we could not get the bleeding to stop. The next morning I had to hug my best friend for the last time as I told him goodbye and that I loved him.

We were not sure how much time we had left with him. I enjoyed every moment I had with him during his last month of life. He was well enough at first to visit his many friends. In five years, Bristol made many friends. He will be dearly missed by all of them.

Even at the end of his life, he continued to do what he did best. That is he touched everyone that he came in contact with. For instance, he made a new friend when my mother and I started going to a gym. One of the staff members got to know and love Bristol. He almost instantly won Jenny’s heart. Everytime he walked into the gym, his tail would start wagging and he would drag me over to see her. In a way, she kept him going in his last few weeks of life. Going to visit her was one of the highlights of his day! Thank you Jenny for being a part of his final weeks and making his last weeks fun!

As much as I miss Bristol, it is time for me to move on to my new adventure with a new guide dog. I leave this Sunday to meet my new guide dog.

I will always love Bristol. He will always hold a special place in my heart. He was my first guide dog. Bristol showed me that I can have a full and active life even though I can’t see. I will always be grateful to him for the gift of independence that he gave me.

Bristol: 12/29/03 to 7/16/11