# Rest In Peace, Joey



## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Our beloved Joey crossed over today. He was 15 years, 6 months and 25 days old.

He had trouble with his back legs for a long time. Last night his front legs gave out. His quality of life was gone. His vet was kind enough to come after work today with a vet tech to help him with his journey.

We miss him terribly. The house seems very empty now.


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## cagal (Sep 3, 2013)

Oh I’m so sorry. It’s always so hard to say goodbye but it sounds like it was the right time to let Joey go.Hugs.


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## dogma13 (Mar 8, 2014)

R.I.P. Joey.So sorry to hear of his passing.


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## jarn (Jul 18, 2007)

I'm so sorry. I only knew him through you, it's clear how special he was. RIP Joey.


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## Thecowboysgirl (Nov 30, 2006)

I’m so sorry. I hope you have some peace in knowing you gave him the last great gift that you could.

Rest In Peace, Joey


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## AKD (Jul 18, 2020)

So sorry for your loss.


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

Run free, sweet Joey. ❤


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## WNGD (Jan 15, 2005)

Love you Joey, healthy again and will be waiting for you.


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## CactusWren (Nov 4, 2018)

RIP Joey.


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## ksotto333 (Aug 3, 2011)

I am so very sorry, may your wonderful memories comfort you. Peace be with you.


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## Buckelke (Sep 4, 2019)

I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. I felt like I knew Joey through your postings and he was very special.


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## Catrinka (Aug 6, 2020)

Joey sounded like such a special old boy. My condolences on going through this heartbreak, but he left you with 15-1/2 years of wonderful memories of life with him. I hope those memories comfort you. 

Rest easy, sweet Joey.


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## Pawsed (May 24, 2014)

So very sorry. This is the worst part of having a dog, letting one go. Even though we know it is coming, it's always heartbreaking and never gets easier.

What an amazingly long life he had. You can be assured that you gave him incredibly good care and wonderful life for him to have lived so long and in such good health. We should all be so fortunate.

Rest in Peace, Mr. Joey.


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## Lexie’s mom (Oct 27, 2019)

I am so so sorry for your loss! Hugs! Rest In Peace Joey!


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## Argos3872 (Sep 1, 2020)

Cheerful1 said:


> Our beloved Joey crossed over today. He was 15 years, 6 months and 25 days old.
> 
> He had trouble with his back legs for a long time. Last night his front legs gave out. His quality of life was gone. His vet was kind enough to come after work today with a vet tech to help him with his journey.
> 
> We miss him terribly. The house seems very empty now.


I’m so sorry for your loss.


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## Squidwardp (Oct 15, 2019)

I am very sorry. Joey must have had a good run at life. Fifteen years+ is a good long span for any dog, especially so for a German Shepherd. You must have been great caretakers.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Squidwardp said:


> I am very sorry. Joey must have had a good run at life. Fifteen years+ is a good long span for any dog, especially so for a German Shepherd. You must have been great caretakers.


Thank you - we gave it our all. It was a labor of love.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Argos3872 said:


> I’m so sorry for your loss.


Thank you. We are devastated.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Argos3872 said:


> I’m so sorry for your loss.


Thank you.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

cagal said:


> Oh I’m so sorry. It’s always so hard to say goodbye but it sounds like it was the right time to let Joey go.Hugs.


As hard as it was, when the vet said “it’s time”, there was no doubt.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Lexie’s mom said:


> I am so so sorry for your loss! Hugs! Rest In Peace Joey!


He’s playing with all his cousins now at the Bridge.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Pawsed said:


> So very sorry. This is the worst part of having a dog, letting one go. Even though we know it is coming, it's always heartbreaking and never gets easier.
> 
> What an amazingly long life he had. You can be assured that you gave him incredibly good care and wonderful life for him to have lived so long and in such good health. We should all be so fortunate.
> 
> Rest in Peace, Mr. Joey.


Thank you. Letting go was very hard, but the vet made it a peaceful and dignified transition.


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

Cheerful1 said:


> As hard as it was, when the vet said “it’s time”, there was no doubt.


It is always a relief when the vet says that and confirms what we suspected, because the doubt and guilt are such a weight on the soul.
Thinking of you today. The days right after are usually the hardest.


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## happyblond (Sep 14, 2012)

So sorry for your loss x


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Sunflowers said:


> It is always a relief when the vet says that and confirms what we suspected, because the doubt and guilt are such a weight on the soul.
> Thinking of you today. The days right after are usually the hardest.


I thought to myself before the vet arrived, Joey would not have lasted more than a few days. He hadn’t eaten for three days; I was giving him water through a syringe that last day. His breathing was labored, his nose was bleeding, he did a poop which looked sticky and a reddish brown color. It was so sad.

Updated: I apologize for the above. I was in a bad place when I wrote it. I can’t remember Joey that way.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

jarn said:


> I'm so sorry. I only knew him through you, it's clear how special he was. RIP Joey.


Special is an understatement.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

happyblond said:


> So sorry for your loss x


Thank you.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

cagal said:


> Oh I’m so sorry. It’s always so hard to say goodbye but it sounds like it was the right time to let Joey go.Hugs.


I can say without a doubt it was the right time, but it hurts like ****.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Thecowboysgirl said:


> I’m so sorry. I hope you have some peace in knowing you gave him the last great gift that you could.
> 
> Rest In Peace, Joey


Eventually I’ll feel at peace. It’s only been one day and it’s awful.


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## Thecowboysgirl (Nov 30, 2006)

I remember that feeling. Be patient with yourself. At times making memorials helped me. Deciding what to engrave on a rock to put on the mountain (there are tons of river rock engravers on Etsy who do a wonderful job)

I made a framed memorial for one that we lost suddenly and young. IT was a shock. I spent a lot of time choosing favorite pictures and including her collar and other things in a nice memorial to hang on the wall.

With my last one I was so devastated I could not look at pictures or videos of her for months and months. I basically hugged my husband and my other dogs and cried for a couple of days.

Just do whatever you need to do and maybe Joey will visit you in some way, too. And know that there are people out there who understand.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Thecowboysgirl said:


> I remember that feeling. Be patient with yourself. At times making memorials helped me. Deciding what to engrave on a rock to put on the mountain (there are tons of river rock engravers on Etsy who do a wonderful job)
> 
> I made a framed memorial for one that we lost suddenly and young. IT was a shock. I spent a lot of time choosing favorite pictures and including her collar and other things in a nice memorial to hang on the wall.
> 
> ...


We just had lunch with friends. They have three dogs and a cat. They’ve been through loss many times, so they get it.


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## Heartandsoul (Jan 5, 2012)

I am so sorry but at the same time reading of such a long life together was in a sense uplifting. 

im glad you have friends who have dogs and understand. The Easter after we lost Sonny, I was able to include my sons dog and some friends dog to the dinner. Having them there was comforting.

Run like the wind sweet Joey.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Heartandsoul said:


> I am so sorry but at the same time reading of such a long life together was in a sense uplifting.
> 
> im glad you have friends who have dogs and understand. The Easter after we lost Sonny, I was able to include my sons dog and some friends dog to the dinner. Having them there was comforting.
> 
> Run like the wind sweet Joey.


Joey hadn’t been able to walk or run for the past year, so the thought of him running like the wind brings a smile to my face.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Sunflowers said:


> It is always a relief when the vet says that and confirms what we suspected, because the doubt and guilt are such a weight on the soul.
> Thinking of you today. The days right after are usually the hardest.


I apologize for my earlier response to you. It was morbid, and not deserving of Joey.


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

Cheerful1 said:


> I apologize for my earlier response to you. It was morbid, and not deserving of Joey.


You have been traumatized. No need for any apologies. You post whatever you need to right now, we are here to listen and support you in any way we can.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Sunflowers said:


> You have been traumatized. No need for any apologies. You post whatever you need to right now, we are here to listen and support you in any way we can.


Thank you.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Thecowboysgirl said:


> I remember that feeling. Be patient with yourself. At times making memorials helped me. Deciding what to engrave on a rock to put on the mountain (there are tons of river rock engravers on Etsy who do a wonderful job)
> 
> I made a framed memorial for one that we lost suddenly and young. IT was a shock. I spent a lot of time choosing favorite pictures and including her collar and other things in a nice memorial to hang on the wall.
> 
> ...


Talk about visiting: we went up to our second home in PA to get away.

Today we saw the following: a little fawn walked past us, looked at us, and ran off like the wind. Then just now we saw a bear outside. I took a video of it. At one point, he lifted his right paw just like Joey used to.


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## Thecowboysgirl (Nov 30, 2006)

Cheerful1 said:


> Talk about visiting: we went up to our second home in PA to get away.
> 
> Today we saw the following: a little fawn walked past us, looked at us, and ran off like the wind. Then just now we saw a bear outside. I took a video of it. At one point, he lifted his right paw just like Joey used to.


That's so great.


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## Rionel (Jun 17, 2020)

Really sorry about Joey. Last week we had to put down our female Collie that was 13 years, with similar circumstances. Hard but definitely necessary.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Rionel said:


> Really sorry about Joey. Last week we had to put down our female Collie that was 13 years, with similar circumstances. Hard but definitely necessary.


I am very sorry for your loss.


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## anita817 (Sep 12, 2019)

Cheerful1 said:


> Our beloved Joey crossed over today. He was 15 years, 6 months and 25 days old.
> 
> He had trouble with his back legs for a long time. Last night his front legs gave out. His quality of life was gone. His vet was kind enough to come after work today with a vet tech to help him with his journey.
> 
> We miss him terribly. The house seems very empty now.


So sorry, this was the same with my Daisy, we were coming in and her back legs just gave, she wasn't able to get up. I don't know where the strength came from but I picked her up (93 lbs) and got her in the house. It was heart breaking seeing her trying to stand. 

Prayers for you during this time.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

anita817 said:


> So sorry, this was the same with my Daisy, we were coming in and her back legs just gave, she wasn't able to get up. I don't know where the strength came from but I picked her up (93 lbs) and got her in the house. It was heart breaking seeing her trying to stand.
> 
> Prayers for you during this time.


Thank you.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

It’s been two weeks, and it still hurts so much. The house is so lonely. We put away Joey’s beds, took everything out of the back seat of the car, threw out all the perishables.

Joey’s ashes are coming today. I don’t know how we’ll be when that happens.

We’ve both looked online at animal shelters, breeders. We think we’ll get another dog, but we’re nowhere near acting on it.

We’ve been able to go out for longer periods of time, which is good and bad at the same time.

I appreciate all of you for your help and support.


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## Catrinka (Aug 6, 2020)

I remember how hard it is and my heart goes out to you. 

I've always had at least two dogs in my life at all times, but we'd lost our last two in just a little over a year (ages 16 and 10) and it hurt so badly that I'd considered not putting myself through that again. We waited a year and a half before deciding to get another puppy and, in hindsight, I wished we hadn't waited. Watching this pup grow up has brought to mind so many happy memories with our last boy and has helped turn the grief.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Catrinka said:


> I remember how hard it is and my heart goes out to you.
> 
> I've always had at least two dogs in my life at all times, but we'd lost our last two in just a little over a year (ages 16 and 10) and it hurt so badly that I'd considered not putting myself through that again. We waited a year and a half before deciding to get another puppy and, in hindsight, I wished we hadn't waited. Watching this pup grow up has brought to mind so many happy memories with our last boy and has helped turn the grief.


Thank you.

I think, just as we knew it was time to let our boy go, we’ll know when it’s the right time for another dog.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Today, an opportunity came up for us to see a dog. His name is Noah; a 6 year old trained and housebroken GSD. He belongs to the man who trained Joey. He‘s a well-respected breeder and trainer. Due to all his time being spent on breeding and training, and his father being ill, he’s looking for a loving home for his adult dogs.

Joey was almost 6 when we adopted him from my husband’s cousin (who got one of his dogs from this same breeder).

We don’t know what if anything will come of this. My emotions are all over the place right now. We miss Joey terribly, but feel that he would want us to share our love with another dog.


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## Fodder (Oct 21, 2007)

Cheerful1 said:


> My emotions are all over the place right now. We miss Joey terribly, but feel that he would want us to share our love with another dog.


this is sort of the way i lean...as difficult as it is to lose one, i always looks forward to opening my home/heart again and tend to hop back in the saddle a bit quicker than most. it helps me heal actually. if you meet him, i feel like you’ll know.


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## Linda P (Oct 2, 2012)

I am so very sorry for your loss... I know it is very very hard.... Joey lived a long time and I am sure you will see him again someday... 😞


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Linda P said:


> I am so very sorry for your loss... I know it is very very hard.... Joey lived a long time and I am sure you will see him again someday... 😞


Thank you. I said to Joey before he passed, “until we meet again”.


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

He would.
I am sure you also will put in the balance all that you know about the future, in getting a dog that isn’t so young anymore.
Whatever you choose, we’re here to support you.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Sunflowers said:


> He would.
> I am sure you also will put in the balance all that you know about the future, in getting a dog that isn’t so young anymore.
> Whatever you choose, we’re here to support you.


Thank you very much.


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## K9WolfAlpha (Aug 9, 2020)

It's so stressful for an owner of a dog for 12+ yrs has to make that decision. I've only had ONE dog die on her own. She was a foster pup the rescue wouldn't adopt out due to her heart, she was predicted to live 2 yrs but made it to 4.5. 
Sorry for your loss. I lost my all black German dog in Sept and still haven't really come to terms with it. He was my heart.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

K9WolfAlpha said:


> It's so stressful for an owner of a dog for 12+ yrs has to make that decision. I've only had ONE dog die on her own. She was a foster pup the rescue wouldn't adopt out due to her heart, she was predicted to live 2 yrs but made it to 4.5.
> Sorry for your loss. I lost my all black German dog in Sept and still haven't really come to terms with it. He was my heart.


I’m sorry for your loss as well. Joey was our first dog, but will always be our heart.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

We haven’t heard back yet from Noah’s owner, but it’s probably for the best. My husband said his emotions are still raw, and I don’t know what I want to do yet.

We went out to dinner with friends last night and when the subject of Joey came up, I cried my eyes out.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

Sunflowers said:


> He would.
> I am sure you also will put in the balance all that you know about the future, in getting a dog that isn’t so young anymore.
> Whatever you choose, we’re here to support you.


Noah’s owner got back to us this morning. He said since Noah (who is 6 1/2) spent his life with other dogs, would we consider adopting Noah plus one of the owner‘s other dogs (who is 4 1/2). 

We will be visiting them at the end of July. The idea of 2 dogs came completely out of the blue. My husband and I will be having lots of discussions in the meantime.

Today is 4 weeks since Joey passed, and it still hurts.


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## NadDog24 (May 14, 2020)

You’ll know when the time is right to bring another dog (s) onto your lives again. My heart goes out to you..


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

NadDog24 said:


> You’ll know when the time is right to bring another dog (s) onto your lives again. My heart goes out to you..


Thank you. It’s been tough. Feels like everything reminds us of Joey.


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## LuvShepherds (May 27, 2012)

I like having two dogs as they play with each other and have fun at home. If you take them they won’t replace Joey but they can fill up some of the emptiness. I hope it works out for you whatever you decide.


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## Cheerful1 (Sep 27, 2011)

LuvShepherds said:


> I like having two dogs as they play with each other and have fun at home. If you take them they won’t replace Joey but they can fill up some of the emptiness. I hope it works out for you whatever you decide.


What we decided was totally unexpected. Our local animal shelter’s Facebook page had an almost 4 year old female GSD mix up for adoption. One thing led to another, and we took her home this past Thursday. Her name is Athena and she is a joy.

I still cry when I talk about Joey, but he’s smiling down on us, saying we done good.


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