Former fire captain pays heartbreaking tribute to loyal pup

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This article was published 14/05/2019 (2640 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Bella passed away peacefully in her owner’s arms after battling cancer.

Dog lovers might already be crying. But former St. Louis fire captain Gregg Favre’s tribute to the dog he rescued on the job gets even more emotional, and he took the internet along for the ride.

Other dogs, “all loved and special in their own ways,” have come and gone, too, he wrote in a Twitter thread that has gone viral. But they weren’t Bella.

She was his fur baby. And while her passing doesn’t have a happy ending, it did have an important message.

It also has the whole internet seemingly sharing in the grief. Favre posted the thread on Friday and it’s since been liked more than 48,000 times and retweeted more than 6,200 times.

Favre rescued Bella 11 years ago while serving on the St. Louis Fire Department and they had been “inseparable” ever since. She was his dog, more than his wife’s, from the start.

“We could communicate with glances and head nods,” he wrote. “My wife would joke it felt like we were ganging up on her.”

Bella was for him what all dogs are to their owners. Always faithful.

Always up for a walk. Always able to bring their owners back to centre when life beats them sideways.

“As life came crashing against our door — grad school, promotions, loss, injury & sickness — our routine stayed the same,” he wrote. She was always grounding. Always loyal.”

Favre continued his celebration of the relationship he shared with Bella by saying he could spend weeks posting pictures and “telling stories of how funny, brave & tender she was.” But he wanted to make a point that everyone could relate to, whether they had a Bella in their life or not.

“My point to all of this is that love & loss go hand in hand. Bella & I made the most of our time & and I hope that in your life, you are cultivating your own brand of joy.”

Pet owners chimed in on Twitter to tell Favre they understood his love for Bella and his loss.

“So very sorry you had to bid farewell to your girl Bella. It’s a pain almost too unbearable,” one user wrote. “But those wonderful memories will pull you through.”

“You were both lucky to have had such a great love story and adventure together,” another wrote.

Dozens of people shared pictures of their own dogs (and cats, too) who have since died.

People told Favre he would never forget Bella but it would get easier.

“I lost mine a year ago next week,” one dog lover said.

“I think about her every day. Your sadness will eventually be replaced with funny memories and good times with her.”

Favre closed out his Twitter thread by sharing that he donated Bella’s unused cancer medications to Stray Rescue in St. Louis, for “other families who might not be able to afford the prescription.”

— USA Today