Boomerang came into our lives as a 5-week-old ball of energy. He was our first family dog, our children just 7 and 9 years old at the time. Neither my husband nor I grew up with Labradors and we were surprised by not only his boundless energy but also his absolute love for food. We soon learned that his love for food was a great motivator in puppy school, which the entire family accompanied him to on a weekly basis, learning as much as he about life together at each class.

He was the constant in our family, the one who always woke up on the right side of the bed, the one who was always kind, and the one who was quick to wag his tail if you simply whispered his name. He was the children’s’ best friend as they moved from grade school to middle school, and then to high school -  keeping up on playdates with grade schoolboys, being the ear available to listen middle school girl drama, and being the patient companion waiting for high school homework to be completed before evening down time commenced.

As the years past, we saw Boomerang’s eyes begin to cloud and his gait start to slow. My husband and I had quiet conversations, away from the children’s ears, praying that he would live long enough to see the kids graduate high school. He not only made it through their graduations, but until they both left for college which was delayed a year due to the pandemic.

We had no idea how sick he was, that cancer had taken over his liver and metastasized. He was sleeping more, his hair around his mouth had gone grey, his eyes though a little cloudy were still kind and sparks of youth and happiness appeared in them any time one of the people he loved turned his way. The children came home from college for winter break and within a week, on his human mom’s birthday, he became visibly ill.

We scrambled to get him to an emergency veterinary hospital, finding the first 3 that we visited were full, winding up at what turned out to be the best veterinary hospital in our area. He fought through the night, not dying on his human mom’s birthday. His family of 4 humans surrounded him the next morning, with sobs of goodbye, as he gave us one last tail wag and closed his eyes.

He was a good boy to the end who changed our lives for the better.