Bye bye my little boy

I have just got back from a week in The Lake District,  so normally I would be posting a few of the many shots I took from the shores of Derwent Water. Unfortunately this post is tinged with a huge amount of sadness instead.

We had a good week, my wife, my little black cocker-spaniel "Boysie" and myself.   Boysie came to us as a rescue dog 8 years and 4 months ago, he was reckoned to be about 5 and a half when we got him which makes him about 14 or 98 in dog years! Days were spent walking the beautiful landscape and evenings were spent photographing it. For an old boy he was doing spectacularly well,  walking 5 miles a day over fell and dale yet still he was keen to go out with me of an evening.  He was always excited going out and just as excited to come home again.

On Friday we were on the last walk of the week in Borrowdale when suddenly Boysie screamed and held his back leg up. It soon became obvious that he couldn't walk on it, so we carried him the half mile to the car and took him to the vets.

The vet x-rayed him and said he had broken his femur (which would normally be the result of a car crash not slipping when walking). The vets gave him some pain killers and we agreed to take him to our vets on the following day as we were due to go home. We went back to our holiday cottage and as he kept waking up distressed I decided to spend the night sleeping next to him so that he wouldn't be alone and scared.  All through the night whenever he seemed distressed I stroked him and he settled down again.  In the morning my wife came down stairs to find us both fast asleep next to each other.

We undertook the long drive home to Essex on Saturday morning & then straight to our vets.  The news from our vets was not so good,  It turns out that he was riddled with bone cancer.  We had no choice but to put him to sleep. We have now lost 2 dogs in 7 months - I am just devastated.

This is Boysie on the beach Thursday at St.Bees in driving rain. For me this picture sums up his spirit, whatever was happening he always wanted to be part of it and to be by your side.
Miss you so much little fella