On March 11, 2002 I received this heartfelt tribute from Jeff Dignan of Crestwood, Illinois.
What a special relationship he had with his Ben.

On March 8th 2002, one month from my Ben's 10th birthday I received a call from his great grandfather (my grandfather) who watched him every day while I was at work. He had said that Ben was having a hard time standing or walking and I should come home. I left work and drove the ten minute drive home.

When I walked in the door Ben struggled to get up to greet me but could not. Ben has a record at the vet a mile long but had been in what I thought was great health for about a year now. Numerous allergies and skin conditions, ear infections and being diagnosed with epilepsy as a puppy, he had been on medication most his life and several attempts to remove him from it led to more seizures. He had been off medication for over a year now with no seizures. We were so happy about that.

Ben was a 100 pound Golden, solid as a rock from all the hiking and swimming we had done most his life. For about the last year or so I slowed down his activity. I realized he wasn't a puppy anymore but he never did. I picked him up and carried him to the car, we drove to the vet about 3 miles away and they took him in right away. He was such a strong boy, and bounced back from everything. I was expecting something serious, but my thoughts never prepared me for what I was about to hear. We were not there more than five minutes when they said that he had passed.

I had met a Golden at a customer's house and something about that dog touched my heart so much that I had to have one. I had found a local breeder and tried to pick one out, but couldn't so as I was leaving he followed me to my truck I didn't have to pick, he picked me.

He ran away all the time, so I built a fence. Then, he hopped. I leashed him up, but he chewed it off. I would get calls from the school that he was playing with the children. I would get calls from people a mile away that he was playing with their dog. He even got a ride home in a police car. I once caught him hopping the fence behind the garage one day (the only time I caught him in the act). We had a talk and he never ran away again.

We did everything together, he stole the hearts of so many. He was my best friend, and he became the most wonderful dog. He amazed me on a regular basis.

The night before he passed we went out for a walk. It had been so cold and messy this Chicago winter. I felt guilty because we had not been out for about a week together. We walked our route and he was running and happy. I never had to leash him, he knew what I expected of him and as we came up to the house he looked back at me with that heart touching smile of his and I thought one day I am going to miss that smile so much. He had a tumor and it burst sometime in the morning hours and he just couldn't make it this time. I am so sorry Ben that I never got to say goodbye. I never got to thank you one last time for all the happiness that you brought me and to tell you how proud I was of you. The shock and the grief are overwhelming. Thank you for being part of my life, and I hope that you'll be there for me again somewhere, sometime.