Dear Bruno

June 11, 1997 - December 31, 2009

Dad says the first 5 years of a dog's life are the best. The following years are spent watching your dog's hind legs weakening and health deteriorating.

Bruno entered our lives as a lil dude. When he was still small we kept him inside, and until we were certain he was big enough to not escape through the tiny opening underneath the gate, we chained him. Mainly because he was so huge and was too friendly, he'd scare visitors.

He'd greet us in the mornings with his leaps and jumps, eager to wake dad up by pouncing on his bed. He was never full and always stared at us at the dining table, salivating. Sometimes when he wanted food, he'd steal a shoe, a toilet paper roll, or a newspaper and hide under dad's desk until we gave him treats in exchange for the items. Aside from his dog pellets, we gave him milk for breakfast, 2 slices of bread for tea and pellets for dinner. Other times we'd feed him fruits and vegetables =)

He enjoyed "sunbathing" in the sun, eating cicadas, playing with frogs (he'd put them in his mouth and spit them out) and chewing mud flaps (we had to scrub cili padi on it so he'd stop). We taught him a few basic tricks (sit, lie down, stay, come, no), he loved his walks so much until he's the one pulling us, not us pulling him and has never been married (ha!). And I know he adored swimming at a water fall nearby my place and the neighbor boy who loves him a lot.

As he grew older, the common hip dysplasia problem that affected his breed began to show. He wasn't able to climb the stairs anymore, and even if he tried, he'd slip and fall. He was also having difficulties trying to get up because his hind legs weren't responding. Even after successfully getting up he had already used half his energy. His normal walks had to be cut short cuz he grew tired fast.

The last few months of his life were spent lying and sleeping. Age was catching up, and he had to use his front legs to "swim" from one place to another cuz his hind legs were useless. Once when my folks were on vacation, somehow he had "swam" to the other side of the house and couldn't move back to the porch. Hence he was left under the scorching sun with no water and "almost died from dehydration", says dad.

He also lost control of his bowels and before dad could drag him to the lawn he'd wet himself and dad had to clean him up. He started to bleed internally (evidently from his black colored faeces), lost his appetite and teeth were starting to blacken. The day before he died, dad called him, and he'd just look up in daze and gave dad a shock. Dad knew he wasn't going to last.

He relented. He finally agreed to call the vet to euthanize Bruno to end his suffering. The vet scheduled an appointment in the afternoon on December 31, 2009. That night dad pushed him to his usual corner, on his sack and covered him with rags and old towels. Mom was finishing work until early morning as usual, and at 3am, she checked Bruno and saw he was still breathing.

The next morning, on December 31, 2009 around 7am - Bruno was gone.

We guessed Bruno wanted to make life easier for us and him by not having the vet make the trip and having dad watching him die from the injection. Dad buried him in the lawn and marked the grave with 4 sticks.

And I wasn't even home. That very week mom called to say Bruno was getting worse and told me to come home when I can =(

Thank you for being a good dog. You guarded the house, you kept us company, you brightened up our lives, you let us rest our feet on you and you always wagged your tail no matter what.