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Happy birthday, Maggie. You would have been nine-years-old today.
				Born on Mother&rsquo;s Day in 2011, we got Maggie from a friend the first week of July that year. I can still remember like it was yesterday, that first day: How scared Maggie was, shivering and shaking, hiding under one of the kitchen chairs and shifting her puppy eyes to inspect her new home.
				It didn&rsquo;t take long for Maggie to rule the house and start chewing up TV remotes. Fortunately, shoes were spared from being destroyed.
				Like most owners of puppies, we pledged not to give in to Maggie&rsquo;s constant barking for attention at bedtime.
				Like most owners of puppies, we waved the white flag that first night and surrendered, letting her sleep in our bed.
				Maggie, a Black Lab with a little Rottweiler in her, died unexpectedly and suddenly Tuesday afternoon at the veterinary hospital, where we took her for an x-ray on her right shoulder. She died three days before her birthday.
				Maggie began limping about a month ago after a walk. We took her to the hospital and initially suspected a ligament or muscle strain. What puzzled me was that Maggie didn&rsquo;t show any pain.
				After a few days with medicine, Maggie&rsquo;s condition worsened, and we scheduled the x-ray.
				Our worst fears were realized as the x-ray confirmed bone cancer in the shoulder. I don&rsquo;t remember if the veterinarian estimated how much time Maggie had, as my mind shut down during that brief phone call, but I had planned to discuss our next step when I picked Maggie up that afternoon.
				About two hours later, the veterinarian called to say Maggie was crashing and to get to the hospital as quickly as possible.
				My two daughters and I didn&rsquo;t make it. Maggie was gone.
				Our house seems empty, and so does my bed. That first night was extremely emotional for me as it was the first night in nearly nine years, except for a cruise to Bermuda, when Maggie wasn&rsquo;t with me at bedtime.
				To say a dog is a man&rsquo;s best friend would be an understatement.
				Maggie and I had a very strong bond that began when she crawled out from under that kitchen chair and laid down in between my legs on the floor, placing her tiny head on my foot.
				Maggie was a quick learner. Potty training was fast as she learned to use her paw to &lsquo;click&rsquo; the patio door to be let outside and &lsquo;click&rsquo; to be let inside. When she emptied her water bowl, she &lsquo;clicked&rsquo; the bowl for a refill. Whenever she wanted something, she would &lsquo;click.&rsquo;
				We developed a routine every day and it seemed Maggie learned my habits by hearing certain sounds at certain times.
				My wife says I&rsquo;m regimental and she&rsquo;s correct.
				I often wake up at 4 a.m. during the work week, have coffee and a small bowl of Lucky Charms each morning, look to see if anything newsy happened overnight and open the closet door for my sneakers to begin exercising. Whenever Maggie heard me open the closet, she jumped off the bed and joined me in my basement gym.
				And when I was finished putting the last weight plate away, usually at 5:30 each morning, Maggie knew it was walk time and would speed walk to the garage door with her leash in her mouth.
				Maggie absolutely loved walks in the woods surrounding our home. She was always at my 12 o&rsquo;clock position, not going too far in front of me but just far enough where I hid behind a tree. Realizing I was missing, Maggie would scamper back and forth, sniffing the ground and following my scent. We did this hundreds of times.
				Whenever I was out in the garage or yard, she was by my side.
				As the coronavirus forced many to work from home, like myself, she laid next to my chair or just outside my home office door. If I got up, she followed. During our newsroom Zoom meetings, I would close the door, resulting in one of Maggie&rsquo;s &lsquo;clicks&rsquo; as the closed door separated us.
				As she had trouble walking the last few weeks, I carried her up and down the stairs and outside.
				I feel ashamed I wasn&rsquo;t there when she died. I feel Maggie&rsquo;s last thoughts were, &ldquo;Why did he abandon me?&rdquo;
				Many pet owners when it comes time to make that painful decision to end their pet&rsquo;s suffering due to an illness often are unable to be in the room. Prior to the x-ray and discussing the worst case scenario, we made the decision to put Maggie down as not to have her suffer. I wanted to be with her till the end.
				I would give anything to have one more car ride, one more walk in the woods and one more of her sloppy kisses.
				Our house isn&rsquo;t totally empty. We have another dog, Myra, a Boxer-Pit Bull mix, we took in from Northeast Pet Rescue in November 2018 to care for.
				Myra is the new sheriff of our house.
				Strangely, the night Maggie died and her body had been taken for cremation, Myra laid on the couch spread out with her head on the arm, the same way Maggie took naps on the couch. Myra usually sleeps curled up.
				Until we meet again Maggie. You were the best friend a man could ask for.

First Person: Man’s best friend will be missed