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Anyone who knows Ben knows he has always wanted a dog of his own, his own best friend, someone to be sat at the door waiting for him when he got home and always love him.

We were driving along one day and ended up behind a car that had a dog in the back window licking at the window wipers, it cracked us up, so we decided to have a walk round the pet shop - just to look under strict orders by his mum he wasnt to have a dog! lol, we walked down the right side looking at all the cute little dogs, and then down to the left side.  Halfway down, we saw the most beautiful, but lonely looking chocolate labrador ever, the last one in his pen.  He was huge for a puppy, and when we found out the tiny chocolate labradors across from him were actually two days older than him, we knew he would be a monster, but the little dog pawed at the glass to get to us.. A lady who worked there asked if we wanted a hold, and Ben was taken in by those gorgeous honey coloured eyes,  He raced to get the money to pay for him as there was only 15 minutes to go, but he knew he had to have him!

We brought him home and everyone fell in love with him straight away.  He was bubbly, gorgeous and just a handful cheeky - stealing pot towels and running under the table - until he became too big to fit under the table, then he just crawled under and took the chairs with him!

Chance was so, so loyal to Ben, always at his side, following him around, both doted on each other so much. 

He was a very clumsy boy, and often walked into the backs of cars whilst trying to catch one last glimpse at that pesky cat that was evading him! But would never hurt anyone or anything, as was proven by Scarlett pulling his tail, dressing him up, climbing all over him etc.. oh and when my gerbil escaped, he simply left it roaming around the floor with a big wet lick mark up its back!

We finally moved into our new family home together and thought all our problems were a thing of the past and that we could now start our life as a real family together.  A week into us moving into our house, Chance being Chance, decided to roam around the garden and chew this that and the other.  Until he chewed a piece of wood with a rusty nail on it.

Chance then seemed to become poorly , which we put down to him having eaten something bad for him, but he would get over it and shake it off.

He went to the vets like the good boy he was, snatching the treats eagerly out of the vets hands as always, who told us he had a stomach bug and put him on anti-biotics.

A week later, he was still no better and now had a massive ball under his chin, back to the vets we went - me having to lug a 7 stone dog into the boot of my car! - who told us the silly moo had an abcess probably from chewing the wood! one more week on anti-biotics should see him right!

One more week on, and several trips to the vets later, I asked for an x-ray as the lump had started to grow again and our baby was looking glum and barely able to move.  We thought he might have had something stuck and could pop him open, cut it out, end of story.

Whe i rang the vet for the results, she told us to come in.  We naturally thought the worst.

When we got there, on the table was an xray machine. 

The vet advised us that the x-ray which was mostly white (and had no little nails or anything definable sticking out) should actually have been mostly black, not white.  His heart was further down than it should have been, and all the symptoms he was having, and had actually had for a long time, but never as bad or as much of a cause for concern, were actually due to the high calcium levels in his blood because he was suffering from a very aggressive form of cancer; Thymic Lymphoma. 

Naturally we begged that he be cured and fixed, but the vet told us that, at most, we had roughly 12-18 months at best.  We were to start chemo the next day.

After taking Chance home and getting over the shock, we watched him and realised he was ready to go, as his breathing was ragged and he had completely given up.

It was the worst decision either of us have ever had to make.

The following day, Ben made that awful phone call to tell the vets he couldnt put Chance through any more suffering and wanted to do the best thing for his best friend, regardless of his own needs to keep his beloved friend alive for his own sake.

We took Chance to the vets later that day, where he toddled in on his own accord, and gave no fight when being put on the table - more proof he was ready we believe.

We held him close and the tears fell wildly as we watched the life drain from our baby's eyes.

Chance was not a pet, he was our family, my baby and Ben's best friend.

We wish we could have seen the signs earlier and have done something about it sooner, so we want others to have that opportunity and be aware of the symptoms before it is too late.

Every animal deserves a second Chance, it was just too late for our Big Man xxx