My daughter’s dog was already an older dog when my daughter passed over via suicide. The dog was confused at first, looking around for her, waiting for her, but my daughter, Buttercup, did not return. The dog would never go into the closet where my daughter died though. She seemed to sense something about that space she wanted to avoid. About a year and a half later, her dog became extremely ill with cancer, and we had to put her down to relieve her suffering. I posted about it in March of 2017 in the Pets section of the Alliance of Hope forum. This is what I wrote: ​
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It began nearly 2 weeks ago. Our daughter’s dog, which she got as a puppy 10 years ago, was lying on her bed near me. Suddenly she began to look up at the ceiling near the stairway. She behaved as though she saw someone she loved and wanted that person to come down and pet her. She wagged her tail, and was so excited, continuing to look upward. I asked her if she saw Buttercup, our daughter, and she got even more excited, continuing to look at the same spot. She then behaved as though she was being petted, and after about 10 minutes, she lay her head down, as though the person had now left.
About 2 hours later, I noticed her lying next to her dog bed, which was unusual for her. She began to have a seizure, which lasted about a minute, then came to after a bit. She had never had a seizure before, but I knew what it was, as Buttercup had severe epilepsy. Several days later, the dog awoke, and her left rear leg was completely paralyzed. At the vet, we learned she had a spinal tumor and a brain tumor, which had caused the seizure.
Within 5 days we were forced to put her down, as the tumors advanced so quickly that both rear legs were now paralyzed, and she was in kidney failure. It went so fast we could barely keep up with it and had to end her suffering as soon as we were able. Our family all gathered to say one last goodbye, and then it was over. We are having her cremated and buried next to our daughter.​​
Buttercup loved her dog as much as any dog or human could ever be loved. It did not seem possible that they could ever be parted. I believe that Buttercup came for her dog because she knew what was coming for her, and to prepare her and us for the transition. Buttercup had come last summer, in much the same way, right before we learned that her dog had a life-threatening infection and needed emergency surgery. Our loved ones do not just want to maintain connections with us, but with their beloved pets as well. These best friends will now be reunited forever.
