I just had to say goodbye to my dog...

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I know we have a lot of threads on similar lines, but I just had to say goodbye to my lovely 6 year old Henry, the stupidest, softest and friendliest chocolate labrador in the world.

I posted a couple of months ago asking for advice, as I’m about to move from the UK to Singapore. We did a couple of weeks holiday/reccie visit at the end of May and pretty much from the first day we knew that there was no way we could take the dog with us. I wasn’t worried about the trip so much, and he wouldn’t have been quarantined - although it’s hugely expensive and I can’t deny it’s nice that we don’t have to spend that money at this particular moment. It’s just so humid there that it’s a relatively indoor lifestyle a lot of the time. We ended up renting a condo on the 6th floor, plus it’s a city - every time we left the block he’d be on the lead. We’re moving from a semi-rural suburb, with endless woods and trails all around us. He’s almost never on the lead here and he roams for miles. He just wouldn’t be able to do that in Singapore.

We’ve found him a lovely family, friends of friends. They live locally, they have young teenage children and lots of time and energy for him. They absolutely love him (they describe it as having had someone else do all the hard work training him) and he’s really responded well to them. I know this is the best decision for him. But still… damn. I feel so guilty. We always knew we would emigrate in the end, but the plan was Australia. Before we got him we researched quarantine to Australia, and we’d decided it was manageable. If we had planned to give up a dog, we wouldn’t have even got him. But life got in the way, we’re not going to Australia, we’re going to Singapore, so here we are. I feel like we’ve let him down in some way - that we made a deal with him and we’ve broken our word. Which I know is stupid, but it’s a real feeling.

He has just been the sweetest boy - he’s seen both of my daughters from babyhood, as a playmate and a protector, a cushion, a friend and, on several occasions, a walking aid :slight_smile: He’s been a huge handful as a puppy, then a genuine pleasure to have around as a less flighty dog. If I had to design a dog from scratch, I think that he’d be a really good prototype. And now he has a new family who will love him and let him love them back.

Shit, doing the right thing sucks sometimes. Bye bye Henry boy, happy trails.

2

You are such a good person! I see dogs every day that have to live in environments which are totally wrong for them, and you have done the absolute right thing for your dog. I know he will miss you and you will miss him, but congratulations anyway. You can (and will) feel sad but you have no need at all to feel guilty.

3

Kudos for the generous and loving heart that let him keep his labrador life, Charley. It’s a tough call, and you’ll miss him. When you’re feeling like you let him down, remember the freedom you you gave as part of your word that you’ll always do the best for him. And that, you have.

May you both settle joyfully in your new worlds.

4

Thank you both, I genuinely hadn’t thought of it as a Good Thing, only as a Best of a Bad Selection Thing. Thanks for your kind words.

5

You did the right and selfless thing, Charley. Henry will have a good life there, and he would have been miserable in a condo on the 6th floor. You’re hurting right now, but it’s a sacrifice for his quality of life.
Henry was lucky to have been adopted by such considerate and loving humans.