Written by Ann LeFlore: for dVerse Open Link Night Week 14. I just recently lost my dog after 11 years. He was a special dog that had only three legs. Five years ago my boyfriend gave me a gift of a small ball of brown fur that had the biggest feet you ever did see. She was a mixture between a German Shepard and Rottweiler. She had the sad eyes of the Rottweiler and grew to be taller than my other dog weighing in at 63 kilo. She is a big dog and it was so much fun to watch her tell my other dog off when he did not come in from the river. Bandit is no longer with us and Naya is lonely and misses him so much. She walks around the yard looking for him and goes over to where his grave is and sits there all day long. This poem is written from Naya to Bandit to tell him good bye. It is a dogs perspective of a best friend.
Farewell My Three Legged Friend
When I came to your space
You kept me in my place
You showed me who was boss
But today I am at a loss
You were there all the time
Life with you was all so fine
Chasing coconuts in the lagoon
Watching you bark at the moon
I was a small bundle of fur
You looked at me with a big gurr
Why did they bring me here
It was hell for you to endure
I grew up so fast and so tall
I was no longer afraid to chase the ball
When we swam in the ocean
I caused such a commotion
When dinner was served at night
You always left me your last bites
When it rained you had your space
But you were always willing to share your place
Now today I am so alone
I walk around to sit on your thrown
I go by your place where you are now
I duck my head and give you a bow
Farewell my three legged friend
I will always remember you till the end
I was your Queen and you my King
Until the end I will always wear your ring
Ann LeFlore
The Gateless Passage 
Comments on: "Farewell My Three Legged Friend" (50)
sad….sorry for your loss and your pups loss of a good friend as well…interesting to think on their thoughts and feelings as i have seen the attachment that animals for with their humans…
I just see how sad Naya is around the yard and how she keep looking asround for her best friend Bandit. I thought it would make a fun write to do this as a dogs loss of his or her best friend.
This one hits home with me. When my black lab was living out his final years we got a yellow lab to attempt to keep him as young as possible. They had their struggles at first, but they eventually bonded. When we had to put my black lab asleep the yellow lab was heartbroken. Now, MY yellow lab reminds me so much of the dog that essentially raised him. Dogs really are amazing creatures.
I’m sorry for your loss. Great write.
Alex
http://alexdissing.blogspot.com/
Yes Alex it does hurt so much when one of your dogs leaves you. Bandit was a special dog and I read this to my boy friend and she started to cry. He said that he loved it so much and he really misses Bandit so much.
oh my…no wonder she misses him…beautifully told from naya’s perspective…if dogs could talk…
Yes only if Naya could talk but she can not.; But when I see her around the yard and go to the beach alone you can tell she misses her friend so much
sorry for your loss. good read.
Thank you so much we all miss Bandit and he was such a good dog it is sad that he is no longer with us.
So so sorry to hear about your missing friend, Naya’s too. It’s so painful to lose an animal, maybe because one feels so responsible for them.
Yes this is true and Bsndit was a special dog with only 3 legs and he was such a good dog. i carried him home in my back pack on my bike he was so much fun and he will be missed so much.
This was so beautiful and so sad. I’m so sorry about Bandit my friend. My heart goes out to poor Naya and you my friend.
Thank you so much Ghosterb. Naya is a great dog and today she had a lot of fun. Everyone loves her so much and she is so gentle and so kind. She is a very big dog and such a baby very loveable and so play full. Today she chased coconuts alone but she was so happy to be out and running free again. It is good to get her out of the yard as often as we can and take her to the beach or across from us on the big land where she can really run free and have a lot of fun.
At first they don’t want that other dog/cat there and they slowly come around and both do truly bond. You captured how they must feel when their life long friend is lost. I think it’s harder on them alot of the time then us, but just as humans they slowly come back around. Love the dedicated verse and dogs are such wonderful companions.
Thank you so much Pat yes at first Naya would not move from the final resting spot of Bandit and seemed to only want to sleep there and look for Bandit. She is fine now and starting to come around. In a few weeks we will more than likely get her a new found friend.
So hard to lose such a close companion. A lovely tribute to your friend
Yes especially when rhey are with you for such a long time. The years and time you spend to teach them feed them and love them but in the end Bandit had a great life and he is well missed
so sad for your’s and your dogs loss …beautiful tribute to a beloved friend ….thank you x
You are so welcome Kez and I thought it would be fun to write a poem in a dogs eye and see how it would come out
So sorry for your loss..
Thank you so much but I think Naya is really sad and she is just now getting over this and acting more like her old self. Many people love this dog and were so amazed to see him on the beach and where ever we went. Bandit will be well missed by all and it is sad he is not here with me any longer
Each dog that I’ve had has left a mark in my life, each unique and each still very much missed. Beautiful tribute. Sorry for your loss.
Beth
You are so right dogs and cats have a way of doing this one. This was only my second dog in my adult life and it is hard when they leave and are gone I do miss him so
awww…. so sorry for your loss, and Naya’s. So lovely to give the tribute from her perspective.
Thank you so much it was just a different sort of an idea to write a poem by and I thought it would be fun to see if this would work out or not and seems to have worked quite well in the end
stay strong,
it is hard to loss a pet or something precious to you.
cheers,
xoxox
yes it is and we are looking for a new friend for Naya right now but it will be up to Naya if she will accept him or not thanks for your kind words
I’m so glad you’re looking for another friend for Naya. She must be feeling so lost without her best friend and play mate. Dogs know deep emotions too, she will be fretting over the loss as much as you all are.
A lovely write from you. I hope another play mate shines it’s light on you all that will help Naya and you all too.
Thank you so much. I just wanted to wait a little time to let things settle then try and find another dog that would be a great new play mate for Naya. It will be hard to see another dog in my yard but I have only had 3 dogs in my life and two of them are gone now. But Naya needs a new play mate and one to challenge her in the lagon to go and chase coconuts with her. She loves rhis game so much
I am so crying – I love how you wrote this from your pup’s perspective. unique and ever so heart-warming (and breaking) I am so sorry for your loss. If you are like me, the writing will help you heal – so keep writing, friend.
I think you could write a beautiful Haiku but for now, I offer you and Naya this one from me.
Cool is autumn’s heart
as our tears fill the river
under Rainbow Bridge
http://rainbowsbridge.com/poem.htm
You are so sweet Sheila and thank you so much for the Haiku this is really special. I was thinking about the loss of my dog and wondered how to express it into words or a poem so I decided that Naya should tell her story evening being a dog you can see by their actions how they feel and how they react. I can see at night that Naya misses her extra food Bandit left for her and sometimes she still leaves some food in her dish for him but then he is not there so she comes back and eats it herself she is getting better now
I lost my Australian Shepherd in May and our German Shepherd/Golden Retriever mix has cancer so I mean it from the bottom of my heart when I say I’m sorry for your loss. It’s a lovely tribute to the love that dogs bring to our lives and the strong bond of friendship they share with one another. Thank you. Take good care as you grieve.
Thank you so much Anna it was so sweet of you to stop by and leave me this message. We are looking for another dog but considering Naya is so large we will more than likely get another big dog to share the yard with her again. I was hoping for a small dog but I do not think this one can or will be possible. I will see what we decide and it will still be a few weeks before we do get a new dog.
I’m sorry you lost your dog. It’s so hard…A lovely homage here.
Jamie
Thank you Jamie I just thought it would be different to write this from Naya and show how she was feeling now that Bandit is gone.
sorry to hear about your loss. What a lovely way to remember 🙂
Thank you so much Lori it was so sweet of you. Naya will thank you too. She is getting use to not having Bandit around but she still misses her long life friend.
Very sad. We have friends who had a very similar experience —sister dogs growing up together and how the survivor so missed her companion.
I was not sure how it would be but the day we burried Bandit Naya laid all day long in the same place he died in and she still goes there all the time to lay where he was. She does miss him but she is getting over it now. I think she will be fine but she misses swimming and chasing coconuts with Bandit now you can see this when she is at the beach.
Oh I’m really sorry to hear this. I have two dogs and I dread that day. They do grow extremely close and although they do bicker from time to time, if one’s out of the other’s sight for more than a few minute they get frantic and you can see their nerves kick in. I feel really bad for the other dog as well. Thanks for sharing with us
yes this is so true Bandit and Naya were so close and Bandit finally came to love and accept Naya and in the end they were best friends and each one was so jealous of the other
What a sweet poem! Animals definitely form bonds just like humans. 🙂
You are so right they do form bonds just like we form a bond with them
Sorry for your lost.
This is a touching tribute. Thanks for sharing it.
Thank you so much Ravenblack I am glad that you liked this. I know the poem was written from Naya and I tried to make it look like it was her that had these idea and how she would or was feeing I just tried something different
Almsot exactly a year ago, we had our aging spaniel put to sleep. I still miss him, the little goofball.
Good poem. And it reminds me of him.
Glynn I know what you mean. After my very first dog had to be put to sleep it was so long before I ever decided to have a dog again. I had some cats but on the island seems they do not stay around that long even if you have them fixed or not others will steal them from you and this one hurts and you do not want to start over again with this one. But as for dog Bandit was my second one and he was just sort of special and after a few years my BF brought home Naya and gave her to me. Now she was really something that little cute bundle of fur and afer how big she grew. Take care and hope that one day you will find anoher dog that you will like and love
So very sweet Sarah…… I know animals miss each other….. I’ve seen it too. Really, really sweet poem!
Thank you so much John I know animals miss each other I saw this last year when my second cat got into some posion that one person threw out for rats and we could not save him. He and my other cat grew up at the same time together and my second cat was really strange for a very long time after the other one was gone. Now I see it in my dog and how sad she is losing her best friend.
What a wonderful tribute!
So sorry for your loss!
Thank you so much for your kind words and I am glad that you liked this so much