Gunther started as a rescue, of sorts. My sister got him as a puppy but life brings on challenges and she found that she needed to let him go. We took him in heartbeat.

Gunther was never really concerned with other animals. He really gave no mind to other dogs, cats, squirrels or any critter. If he heard people, or even better kids, he went crazy. He had to visit and had to be touched.

He was an amazing dog. My first memories of him involved having to phone ahead if we were visiting his house because he had a “very excitable” bladder as a puppy and when he saw or heard our voices, there was quite the mess. For that reason, all the visits had to start outside. He joined our home in 2011 and brought nothing but joy and happiness and maybe a touch of neediness. Nothing wrong with that. Any dog owner will smile when they recall being met at the door with a friendly face and wagging tail. Having him sit next to you, touching you; well…you were never alone even in the darkest of times. No matter how bad a day you had, it melted away almost instantly. Sadly, that is gone forever.

We are going to miss our boy. We will now have to survive on the memories of the joy he brought, the antics he pulled, and the personality he shared.

Rest in peace, my Gunther. Rest in peace.