As someone who has owned a dog in his lifetime, I have to say that one of my biggest regrets is that I wasn’t able to help my furry friend before he passed.
I really loved him and wanted him to live a long and fulfilling life with his family, but the universe had other ideas and it just wasn’t meant to be.
Dogs, above all, are fragile creatures and they require a lot of care and attention to stay healthy, even as they get older. This is why it’s exceptionally rare for dogs to live over 20 years.
The dog we will be talking about in this story is one of the rare examples of how much a loving family can do to make their pet’s life better and more fulfilling, even in their senior years.
Meet Augie
In August of 2020, a Golden Retriever named Augie, from Tennessee, turned 20 years old.
This was marked as a big cause for celebration and the family threw a big party for the dog and her closest siblings. Their mom made a carrot cake for dogs, and they absolutely loved it.
She currently holds the title of the oldest Golden Retriever in the history of her breed and the family made sure everyone knew it.
Very few Golden Retrievers actually live to turn 18 or 19 years old, and then we have Augie, who turned 20 years old.
While she was dealing with some kidney issues in her senior years and was no longer playful and mobile as before, she remained relatively healthy.
Her family says that she still loved her little walks around the yard and was still playing with her siblings occasionally.
A Life Of Turmoil And Hardships
Despite Augie living a happy life in her senior years, it wasn’t always like that.
She was a rescue dog and she struggled a lot with finding a loving family, as 2 families turned her down before she found her forever home.
Even though her life was hard, everything turned out okay for her in the end. Her owners, Steve and Jennifer Hetterscheidt, took her in, and she spent the rest of her life with them and her new dog siblings.
Augie settled in fast, and she has shown on many occasions just how much she loves her new family.
She spent a lot of her time playing games like fetch or just being with her furry siblings. Her family would also take her on many amazing road trips that she really loved.
Very Sad News
Some time had passed, and just a little before her 21st birthday, her health turned for the worse, and she just couldn’t go on anymore.
The family said that Augie had crossed the rainbow bridge on March 31st, 2021. In a statement on instagram, Jennifer said: It is with profound sadness that I tell you Miss Augie passed away.
Augie, in her own way, told me her little body just couldn’t go on any more, that she was so very, very tired and it was okay to let her go.
Sherman, who passed away in January, was there at the Rainbow Bridge welcoming her with full-on body wiggles, tail wagging and licking her face as he always did here on Earth.
Despite her hardships in her last few moments, Augie had enjoyed a relatively long and happy life with a family that loved her very much, and they shared so many beautiful memories together.
It’s so amazing to see just how much we can do for our little furry friends to not only extend their lives, but to create one that is filled with a lot of love and many heartwarming moments.
