Roddy was only seven and he is my best friend, On July 22, 1999 my daughter came home and found him. He died in his sleep laying in one of his favorite spots right in front of the kitchen door. On the long ride home that night the grief and sadness was overwhelming, he was only seven years old and when I said good by to him in the morning he was healthy. I.ve been down this path many times with other friends of mine, Gussie, Sophia and Puppy and not one has been easy. Gussie was a mixed breed that had health problems from the time she was born and when she passed away it was a blessing that her suffering was over. Sophia was a big Old English Sheepdog who had more friends than I did, people would stop on purpose just to visit with her. Well she developed cancer and had to have her leg amputated. Fortunately she gave our family and friends three more wonderful years of happiness,She was eleven when she died on Christmas Eve. Living with her was another mixed breed puppy a beautiful little buckskin colored dog that looked like a small wolf her name was Pup. She was a wonderful animal. She was very afraid when she first came to us hiding in my daughters closet for a long period of time, until she became fast friends with Sophia and our family, Pup would go on long runs in the country with me, however she developed a liver disease and died at the young age of three on the fourth of July 1992, I still mourn her daily when I run those routes. But one June day in 92 my daughter brought home this little living terror of a Lab/Shep mix, the most misbehaved puppy we ever had, but I liked him immediately and after some sweet talk to my wife we kept him, This was my friend Roddy, after a few months he took on the look of a Labrador, golden in color with the floppy ears, he was great,he was also a male in this female world we lived in. Roddy would become the most behaved and problem free dog we ever owned, never one accident in the house, a great watch dog, companion, everything you wanted in a friend. This guy had more names than any of our other dogs, I particullary liked to call him Number One, as he always took over the care of the pack while I was gone, every morning he slept beside our bed and when I would leave in the morning he would jump up in my spot and stay there until my wife would get up. He was great. About a year after Roddy was in our home we got involved with Greyhound rescue and brought home a friend for my buddy, his new friend was another female named Prinny,they became fast friends and played together and went on walks together, they never fought with each other. Well one day last week while in one of my momnets of dispair and grief I came upon the Rainbow Bridge site and was able to come to some peace with my self, you see the one thing that I always wanted in my mind was conformation that I would be able to be with my buddies some day, and unbeliveably Rainbow Bridge has given me this hope. It will sure make passing into the unknown much easier when my buddies are there waiting for me. Thank you Rainbow Bridge. And we miss you terribly Roddy, your family Stu, Danielle, and Kezi. Stu Richards