Harley Miller
REST PEACEFULLY LOVELY BOY (8.4.2019)
On Monday 8th April, our lovely boy, Harley, was given sleep when his quality of life deteriorated and to prevent further suffering.
We knew it would be better for him if we put him to rest once he could no longer have the life he loved so much and had been used to during his four years with us.
It has left a big hole in our lives and the house is just not the same without him.
A CRUEL DETERIORATION
A few days before his passing, Jill and Michael contacted IRR for advice and our permission to do what may be necessary. They told us, “Our lovely dog Harley has not been well”.
They said, last September, he had developed what everyone thought was arthritis but it did not improve when medicated with Metacam and, instead of getting better, he gradually got slower and slower with his walking.
The vet started tests and, after many visits to the vet and Harley undergoing various x-rays and scans, it was discovered he had a mass on his spleen which was, luckily, benign.
During this time, he continued to get slower and slower and even a visit to an orthopaedic specialist found nothing. At this point, a DNA test was done and that revealed a degenerative disease for which there is no cure.
They all missed the long walks That Harley so enjoyed but, at the beginning, they still managed to take him out.
He had always loved his walks so much and was, clearly, very frustrated by his less and less active lifestyle. The once quiet dog developed a habit of barking, very loudly, at all times of the day and night just to get attention. The only thing that would stop him was giving him treats which would not help his weight and would just be adding to his problems.
HE HAD SO LOVED HIS BUSY LIFE
Jill remembered back “Harley was a very active dog and he was most at home in the woods near us, running off from us but always coming back from a different direction. He loved his walks and he kept us fit and healthy.
He only ever barked when he wanted his walk or he was ready for his food. He would have been a very fat dog if he hadn’t had all the long walks as his nose, invariably, led him to all the food he could possibly find whilst out on his walks.
He never caused us any problems in the home, except at the very beginning when he had a lot of diarrhoea.
Unfortunately, he never learned to fetch a ball so we couldn’t play many games with him but this didn’t seem to worry him as he usually fell fast asleep after his walks.
If he got bored, he would go out in the garden and dig holes under the bushes and lay down in them so you had to go in search of him. Luckily, this didn’t cause too much damage as Michael has always been quite proud of his garden”.
It must have been a dreadful decision for Jill and Michael to take as Harley hadn’t made old bones but, too often, to unselfishly let them go is the greatest act of kindness and love we can give them.
Sleep well, Harley, you will be greatly missed but loved forever.
HISTORY
In 2015, Harley was 4 years old. He is a Russet Gold coloured, very affectionate, purebred Golden Retriever with an exuberant personality
He had been rescued from a Pound in Ireland and was vaccinated and neutered before being brought to the UK.
HIS FOSTER REPORTS
PERSONALITY: Harley is very affectionate and playful. He gets on very well with other dogs and children. As yet he has not been tested with cats.
SOCIAL LEARNING
Having been left to his own devices Harley is probably not house trained. He is not good with recall and is strong on the lead. All of which can be dealt with by good training, love and affection.
HARLEY’S DREAM HOME
This exceptionally attractive boy needs a family with a lot of patience and bucket loads of love to bring the best out of this charming chap.
GREAT NEWS October 2015
Harley went to live in his Forever Home.
UPDATE FROM HIS FOREVER HOME (26.7. 2016)
When Harley went to live with Jill and Michael last October, he was quite thin and had the runs. He has filled out nicely now but he still keeps getting the runs due to his scavenging as anything dropped goes in his mouth, especially banana skins!!
He loves his walks, especially in woods. He disappears in one direction and comes back from another. They can let him off the lead on his walks as his recall is very good but, as with most retrievers, he loves his food and that is when he goes into hoover mode. Jill says they don’t want to put a muzzle on him as he has such a lovely nature and they would hate people to think that he is dangerous but his indiscriminate eating does his tummy no favours.
Jill told us “At last, Harley seems to be mixing with other dogs and is beginning to play with them, although he is wary of ones who come rushing at him.
We know there was not much information on his background but he was house trained and, although we joined a training class, we left after a few weeks as there was very little he had to be taught. He likes a fuss made of him, enjoys his grooming and the neighbours love him. He has now started to go into water in this hot weather.
Thank you to IRR for rescuing this really lovely dog”.