Blissful final days for Kofi
A DYING dog had a dream final week, including a beach walk, a party with cardboard boxes to tear up and steak and salmon to eat. German Shepherd Kofi, 11, lived it up in his final days before being put to sleep. Owner Fiona Gilmore, 46, made the heart-wrenching decision to have Kofi put down after his health began to deteriorate due to his age. She booked a vet appointment for the afternoon of April 10 and took Kofi for a walk on a beach at sunrise that morning. And the day before, she invited a friend round to her garden in Dunbar, East Lothian, where Kofi had steak, salmon, and even a cake made from liver and decorated with cream cheese. Just before he died, Kofi was allowed to play his favourite game, man trailing, where he hunted a veterinary nurse around the outside of a building. Fiona, who works as a dog trainer, said: “I had Kofi since he was seven weeks old.
“When he was six months old we went to live in Italy, we lived in Wales, we travelled around together.
“His back legs were starting to go and he was in pain.
“I needed to make a decision at some point, rather than wait until he couldn’t enjoy anything.”
Fiona, who has one other dog, Novak, aged two, added: “It has been really lovely that I have been able to have a date in mind and been able to do what I wanted to in the run up.
“We have said goodbye with one last walk and a swim in the sea.
“He had a great adventurous life, we did lots of things.
“They have got me through lockdown.”