GOODBYE OLD FRIEND

Today is a tough day in our home as we had to put our beloved Wesley to sleep this morning. He finally lost his battle with ailments that come with old age - congestive heart failure, kidney failure, Alzheimer's, etc. Wesley was around 17 years old, as he was already a year or two old when Mel got him in 1991 or 1992, when she lived in Dallas.He was a faithful companion to her and Brandi (her Bishon who passed a few years ago) for many years, never complaining, never sick, until the last 18 months or so.

Wesley, aka Wizzer (as Michael and Matt called him), Old Man, Wes, and Grandpa, was actually named for Wesley Crusher, a character from Star Trek: The Next Generation. (Yes, Mel is a Trekkie)

I like to remember him best when we lived on Wakeman here in San Antonio. Since Mel always lived in apartments, Wes never had a yard to call his own. When we moved to San Antonio, he finally had his yard! He was king of his domain and pranced around like a little lion, always protecting us.

Wes was even a movie star of sorts, making a cameo appearance in the He-Man vs. WWF video that the boys and I produced back in 1998 or 1999. That was when they named him Wizzer, He-Man's trusty sidekick and companion. Almost as if on cue, Wes would bark so he could be heard in the video.

We almost lost him 18 months ago when his kidneys started failing. Our vet told us at that time that his heart eventually would give out and his body would shut down, so he was living on borrowed time. We were blessed to have him as long as we did.

The last couple of days he began to deteriorate very quickly. He saved his last gift for Mel last night. Never one to let any of us hold him for longer than a couple of minutes, he slept in Mel's arms as his breathing was very labored. He gave her enough time to reconcile herself to make the right decision to put him to sleep; he was unselfish to the end.

It will take time to mourn him, but we know the decision was the right one, to preserve his dignity and quality of life.

Take care Old Man. We love you and will see you again someday....