# Pumba



## Pumba19 (Oct 19, 2011)

Hello all,

I used to be an active member of this forum when I first got my golden girl, Pumba in 2011. Life got busy and I faded away from this group. I remember how awesome and supportive everyone was and figured this might be the best place for me to come. After only 7 short years, my girl developed cancer this past spring. It didn't take long for it to take over and in June she made her journey across the rainbow bridge. 

Now it's September and I am still having a tough time adjusting. It's hard to believe the amount of your heart they take with them.


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## ClanceyCanuck (Jul 24, 2018)

I am so very sorry to hear about Pumba


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## cwag (Apr 25, 2017)

I am so sorry for your loss of beautiful Pumba. It is so hard at any age but 7 is way to young.


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## LynnC (Nov 14, 2015)

I am so very sorry for the loss of your sweet Pumba at such a young age. May she Rest In Peace.


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## dlmrun2002 (Mar 4, 2011)

Thanks for posting the great photo of Pumba during your difficult time. Many here know how you are feeling having shared the same heartache. Weather it is two months or two years, we all have our own path of adjustment to loosing a Golden. We all share your loss and hope her great memories, in due time will bring some sunshine to your day. Pumba would like that for you.

Godspeed to Pumba

dlm ny country


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

I am so very sorry for your loss of your beautiful Pumba.

It's a long journey to find peace and for your heart to heal, take each day one at a time. 
My thoughts are with you.


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## Ivyacres (Jun 3, 2011)

I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. Pumba was beautiful.


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## Olympia (Jan 11, 2010)

So very sorry for your loss!


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## Neeko13 (Jul 10, 2010)

So sorry for the loss of you Pumba.. she was a beauty...I'm sure she had a wonderful life..7 is way too young to lose our bff....


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## swishywagga (Nov 13, 2012)

So very sorry for the loss of your precious Pumba, I have added her to the 2018 Rainbow Bridge List.


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## PNWgoldenlover (Sep 16, 2018)

I am so sorry for the loss of your girl! We just went through this on September 14th when our eight year old died from a prescribed drug after an ACL tear. I still cry every day-there is such a void. I wish you peace, it is such a huge loss and I am right there with you.


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## SusanS (Jul 23, 2018)

I am sorry for your loss. It is so true, they take such a huge chunk of our hearts with them. I understand as it has been two months and the void is unbearable at times.


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## azzure (Dec 10, 2011)

She was beautiful. Somewhere up there, she still is.


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## HenryandOliver (Aug 15, 2013)

I'm so sorry. We lost our Oliver, age 5, to cancer in June as well. It is so painful. Just when I think I'm feeling better and working through the grief, it will hit me out of the blue. I think this is the way it's going to be. I know you must miss her like crazy. It's a huge void and a horrible heartbreak to lose them this young. Hugs to you.


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## kwhit (Apr 7, 2008)

I’m so very sorry for your loss. I lost my Chance on September 12 and I know your pain. It’s overwhelming. 

RIP sweet Pumba.


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## Lbiv (May 23, 2018)

I’m so sorry, lost my 6yo bestest boy May 22nd to cancer.,, I know exactly how you feel. I did just get another golden which has helped mend my heart some, but reading this forum brings me back to the day I had to say goodbye- I understand your loss. He was my everything


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## Jaxmommy (Oct 21, 2017)

I'm so sorry. These pups have a way of just grabbing hold of our hearts, and it's almost unbearable to have to let them go. We are coming up on the 1 year anniversary of the loss of my Jax, I have been so emotional. He also was only 7 and died from cancer (hemangiosarcoma of the heart). My heart goes out to you.


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## Slowpoetry (Sep 22, 2009)

I, too, signed up with this site when Molly Dolly came into our life. I, too, drifted away. I, too, just lost our Molly. I am devastated.
Our Molly Dolly left us on September the 15th. She was a beautiful golden retriever and only nine years old. We didn’t know she was sick until she went a bit off her food, which was unusual for her. The next day at the vet’s she was diagnosed with cancer of the spleen. That was a Thursday and she past away Saturday. On Friday she lay on the grass on our front lawn and everyone who loved her came by to see her and say good bye. That evening she pulled me and my husband towards the car- as sick as she was she wanted to go for a car ride. We took her to her most favourite spot- a large empty field of long golden grass where she could dig and run and sniff. She did all those things that evening- more slowly, more gently, but with great joy.. That is a memory I will always keep. The next morning she was hardly able to stand and we called the vet come to our home in the afternoon. All that morning we lay on the floor with her telling her how much we loved her and what a good dog she was. Our good friends, who loved Molly very much,
were there with us for her passing.
Molly came into our life when we were very much in need of healing. She was joy and hope and love. We miss her so very, very much. We miss the sound of her. We miss her exuberance. Our house is much too quiet now. We wonder how we did not see that she was sick, and yet we know with this type of cancer it would have made no difference. Still, we think she knew. We would catch her over the last few months simply staring at us and I would say to my husband, “Look. There it is again, like she wants to absorb us,” And a couple of months ago she started to pull us towards a park bench in the park behind our home.. She would hop up on it with us sitting on either side. We’d stay for 5 minutes or so before continuing on- the same bench every time we walked in there.. We walk there now and think about her- our beautiful friend.
Here is what I would love some input on- my husband and I are in our early 60’s , we are healthy but we don’t know if it’s fair to bring another golden into our home at our age. Yet, I can’t imagine life without the possibility of bringing that joy back into our lives. When I say to myself ,’be grateful you had a golden at all in your life’ ,with the idea that our time with golden companions is over, it makes me feel old and hopeless. I know part of the despair is the fact that I/we are actively grieving, but any advice anyone can give us on golden for older adults would be most helpful.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.


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## littlehouse (Sep 19, 2018)

Slowpoetry, I lost my guy to hemangiosarcoma in August 2016. He died on my living room floor with me lying next to him, and the pain of his loss is still with me. I tear up when I think about him and what a wonderful friend he was and all that we had been through together. I'm also in my 60s and would love to have another golden in my life. I'm in good health except for some back problems. 

Both my parents, who led less healthy lives than I live, lived well into their 80s, but I was recently denied a puppy by a breeder who at first said I was approved for one. This breeder, who is older than I am and very overweight, gave me no reason for her sudden denial. But it left me heartbroken and angry, especially since I provided her with everything she requested, visited her home, and even helped her at an event. The reality of life is that you never know when it's going to be taken from you. Someone in their 40s could be stricken with a deadly disease or killed in a car accident, and we in our 60s could live another 20 years. To be denied a puppy because of age is just cruel and ignorant, and I hope it won't deter either of us from bringing another golden into our lives.


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## LynnC (Nov 14, 2015)

Slowpoetry I am so sorry for your loss. May Molly Dolly Rest In Peace. My husband and I are in our early 60's and I wouldn't hesitate getting another puppy. I don't believe your age should be an issue as long as you are committed to training and exercising your pup. In fact, I believe a pup will keep you and your husband active and will add to your quality of life. If you're worried about a puppy you might want to consider an older pup??


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## Slowpoetry (Sep 22, 2009)

I am very sorry you experienced that heartbreak. How very hard for you. I hope you will find another golden to love.


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## Slowpoetry (Sep 22, 2009)

Thank you. I needed to hear that. It is such early days for us and we miss her so much. As we try to listen deeply to our hearts for guidance your words of encouragement bring the comfort of possibility that this joyous part of life need not be over. Thank you.


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## sophieanne (Feb 4, 2014)

I am so sorry for the losses of beautiful Pumba and Molly Dolly. Hold your good memories close to help you through this difficult time. Cancer is so cruel to our beautiful golden babies.


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## cwag (Apr 25, 2017)

Slowpoetry said:


> Here is what I would love some input on- my husband and I are in our early 60’s , we are healthy but we don’t know if it’s fair to bring another golden into our home at our age. Yet, I can’t imagine life without the possibility of bringing that joy back into our lives. When I say to myself ,’be grateful you had a golden at all in your life’ ,with the idea that our time with golden companions is over, it makes me feel old and hopeless. I know part of the despair is the fact that I/we are actively grieving, but any advice anyone can give us on golden for older adults would be most helpful.
> Thank you for taking the time to read this.


I am so sorry for your loss of Molly. It is obvious that she had a great life with you and was well loved. I got Rukie last year when I was 57. We asked for a more laid back couch-potato dog and as much as a Golden can be a couch-potato, Rukie is. He was a very easy puppy (but a biter, like most) and does not need us to do a lot to keep him exercised. A good session of frisbee most every day and a walk keeps him content. If you get going early on puppy classes and work hard on not pulling on the leash I think you could easily manage a puppy. I hope to get another puppy when I retire and we will be 63 and 65 then. I realized before we got Rukie, that I cannot be completely happy without a Golden Retriever. A new puppy would never replace Molly, of course, but it does help heal your heart and fill your home. Best wishes.


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## Pumba19 (Oct 19, 2011)

Thank you everyone for the kinds words.. Seems like it's been a tough year for many.


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