4/01/2012 – 2/08/2022
I picked Benji up from beagle welfare on 29th September 2013, and before going any further, I can’t thank them enough for giving me the most loyal, loving, gorgeously beautiful, awkward at times best friend I could ever wish for.
This will be hard to write as I have so many happy memories with him, and he has been featured a few times in full cry.
He was always by my side, and we doted on each other. This year in May I suffered a heart attack and was in the hospital for 5 days recovering and although he was being looked after while I was getting treatment, the welcome I received off him when I got home was so loving, and I knew how much he had missed me.
I have been really struggling to come to terms with it, but I made sure he got his walks, and he was there for me at the time I really needed him. He gave me something to look forward to, and the times we had were special. He was there telling me not to give up in his unique special way. Now that is gone. The relationship we built and the respect we had for each other. Everything was worth it.
Like all beagles, he loved his food, and I’m sure all beagle owners go through the same. He would take every opportunity to get a little bonus or look at me with his beautiful eyes. I know at times, when I was filling his biscuit tub up from his big bag, he would put his head into the bag to eat as many as he could before I pulled him out. Then he looked at you with his tail wagging as if to say, you gave me the opportunity I took it I’ve been a good boy. Another instance was on holiday, and he watched for anything edible but might go in the bin, and then when he thought he could get away with it you would hear a bang with the bin fallen over and him looking for any food. Also, if anything was on the worktop in the kitchen and your back was turned, he would use his little tricks and know how to reach it, and before you knew it there was nothing left.
One of his little tricks was if he was hungry or wanted any treats from his cupboard, he would go and tip his food bowl upside down, Oliver style as please dad, I want some more. His food bowl had many journeys across the kitchen floor. These are just the kind of things that make me smile when I think about him, but deep down, I wouldn’t have changed his personality or character for nothing. That’s what made him special, let him be himself, and you reap the rewards and loyalty from him.
He used to sleep on my bed regularly, and even though he had half a bed to himself, he always chose to lay right at the side of me, and often, throughout the night, I would end up closer and closer to being pushed out of bed.
We have had beagles in our family for nearly 40 years, and they were all unique in their own way, but Benji had it all, the best of the best.
He was so laid back, and a relaxed little boy and nothing really fazed him. It was a scary time when we discovered he suffered from epilepsy, but I am thankful he only ever had 6 seizures that I recall. The first time you see it, you wonder what is happening and are helpless other than trying to make sure they don’t bang their head and try to reassure them.
Every beagle is different with their own unique character and personality, and I think it’s most rewarding letting them be themselves, with a little guidance when they are mischievous or naughty, and you see how they develop, and the trust you have in each other, the bond you both feel are worth the time and effort you put in.
