In Burlington, Vermont, a Golden Retriever Dog named Finn had been diagnosed with terminal T-cell Lymphoma when he was six years old. Unfortunately, Finn did not respond well to chemotherapy treatments and only had a few weeks left to live. The Petersons, who were Finn’s owners, decided to create a bucket list of his favorite activities for him to do before he passes away.
For one of his owners, Cynthia Peterson, Finn has always been there for her and helped her to cope with the grief when she lost her father to cancer. Now, she is going to help him, like he did so for her. Both Robert and Cynthia Peterson thought hard and managed to come up with a total of 50 activities that Finn loved or, would love to do.
Some of the items on the bucket list include: riding in a hot air balloon, eating ice cream, going camping and even visiting a fire station. The couple also made sure to include what Finn already loved to do, such as playing fetch and running through the sprinkler on a hot day.
Finn managed to complete most of the activities listed on his bucket list for the next weeks, until his health took a turn for the worst a few days before his death. According to the couple, Finn’s ailing health caused him to have breathing difficulties and they knew they would need to plan for an earlier departure than they had expected. On the day of Finn’s death, the couple took him to play fetch by the lake before bringing him to see the people he loved for one last time.
Finn even ate a cheeseburger for dinner before they took him home. To ensure that Finn was comfortable, the couple took every couch cushion, pillows and blankets that they had to create a “cuddle zone”. They even lit candles around it to make it more snug for Finn. During Finn’s final moments, the couple hugged and talked to him. Their other dog, Yogi, even came by to sit beside Finn before he peacefully passed away.
Finn was an incredible dog and would always be remembered. The couple also hope to complete the last item on Finn’s bucket list, which is to feature Finn’s story in a children’s book as a memorial and raise awareness for pet cancer.
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