Maggie…this story is all about Maggie…a Newfoundland dog…and her final days.
Maggie was suffering badly from cancer. Her pet parents, Eli and Marianna wanted to give her a dignified departure, filled with all the things she loved. On her final weekend, they took Maggie paddle boarding, camping, played ball with her, and gave her lots of belly rubs and plenty of her favorite food. They just wanted to make Maggie's last days some of her best days. Their only regret was not being able to let her do one of her favorite things — play in the snow — one last time. So Eli turned to social media to see if he could make this one activity happen for Maggie before they had to say goodbye.
He made a request for shaved ice. Luckily, Tiffany King, the facility director for the Salt Lake County Ice Center saw it. The Salt Lake County Ice Center is a year-round, indoor ice skating facility. Tiffany jumped at the opportunity to make Maggie’s last day extra special. Tiffany met Eli at the rink and loaded up his van with their Zamboni “snow” for him to take home.
So, it turned out to be a memorable morning for Maggie to spend with her parents before her departure.
In a follow up post on Facebook, Maggie’s parents said,
“We are incredibly grateful that our sweet girl spent her final moments surrounded by immense love and comfort. Hug your loved ones extra tight for us tonight."
I think with the passing of my dog a few months ago and then hearing so many of your stories about saying goodbye to your dogs, we can all – while wanting to bawl our eyes out right now – we can ALL appreciate what Eli and Marianna did to give their sweet a dignified and loving last day.
Their last FB post is below. Warning - grab a tissue.
Photo: Getty Images