My best friend Jade

Mai D

When people learn how to love dog's they are hook for a life time. Everyone has an animal that touches their life more than any other. For me, it was a dog named Jade a pure breed German shepherd dog. He was given to by a friend who does not want him anymore. Jade in a way is not in a physical condition when i took him in. His pelvic bone is fractured due to an accident with his previous owner. But with this he was a normal young dog that chewed, dug and yearned for the attention he was not getting. I rescued him only once but he rescued me over and over with his unconditional love.
German shepherd dog's is known for its intelligence, beauty , loyalty and nobility. this characteristic are what makes German shepherd the perfect choice for their work as a police dog. But for Jade he is one perfect guard dog who you can trust. after three months of training and love Jade's destructive behavior stopped. He never growled or bared his teeth except when I was out walking once and a man reached out and grab me. Jade looked more ferocious than any police dog I'd did not know he had. The man backed off and ran. I never saw those teeth again.
Jade calmed me whenever I was stressed out. If he saw me crying he'd whine and push his big head into my hands until i stopped. He was so much a lively dog, when i arrived from work he is so eager to go out like he is telling you that he is happy to see you and misses you so much. One day when i was feeding him i notice there is something wrong with Jade he is having hard time getting up. He is having trouble with his hip again so the next day we went to the vet , she makes a couple of examinations and some test but the worse she told me is that Jade is having lymphoma, it is a tumor of the lymph nodes. So I thought its just another antibiotics for Jade but the doctor said its malignant. I never thought dog's have cancer, i know human does but dog's never. She told me that Jade still have a few months to live.
Then without warning he also developed a condition called mega esophagus, in which the tube leading into the stomach dilates and food can't be digested, only regurgitated. He was hungry and wanted to eat but could only reach up his food. I did everything i could I even cooked some special food and not giving him the commercial food. Help him up when he eats and hold his hind legs for ten minutes in order for the food to fall into his stomach. Finally after he'd been on intravenous for a week and he lost 10 pounds, I know i was losing the battle.
I could not bare looking at him in pain. So the doctor suggest of euthanasia when i notice Jade did not wag his tail or even get up to see me when i came home. He was to weak. So much on my mind at that time thinking what is the best thing to do. I don't want to kill my dog but then i don't want him to suffer. So i decided to part him to sleep first thing in the morning.
As i came home he saw me and lifted his head for a moment, then lowered it and sighed as if to say "I have to go now". That night i slept on the floor with my arms around him.
The next morning before the rest of the world was awake I notice Jade is not moving anymore nor breathing. I know that he is gone and realized that at the end he does not want me have that guilt. I was not prepared for the despair i felt when my beautiful dog died. But now i believe Jade did everything that he could to protect my feelings, even on his last breath he showed how much he loves me.