The Hardest Post I've Ever Had To Write

Yesterday was one of the hardest days we've had on the farm as our beloved steer, Hey, passed on about 11:30 a.m.

He had been in slowly declining health for the past couple of years, suffering the effects of old age. We estimated him to be about eighteen and he has lived with us for over fifteen years. So it does help a little bit that he had such a long life and he was so well loved. I am also grateful that it was not a long, debilitating illness that  took him but more likely a heart attack or some other quick event.   

   
Here is a quite recent photo of Hey and Betsy, taken through the barn door.

I wish I had taken some pictures of him on this past Saturday as that was the day Donna and I gave him his spring bath. We spent a couple of hours with him, shampooing him, brushing him, and drying him off with a big fuzzy towel. All the while we talked to him, told him how handsome he was, and made sure he knew how grateful we were to have him in our life. Yeah, we really did talk that way about a cow. He was a very special member of our family.

Here's a 2006 photo of Hey preparing to devour a waffle. He loved baked goods: bagels, bread, cake, you name it. Curiously, neither of the other cows ever cared for them. Just Hey.

Here is the earliest known photo I could find last night of Hey. He was between two and three years old when we adopted him to save him from the slaughterhouse. That is Donna giving him a kiss.  We kissed him on the head nearly every single day of his life.

We can't thank our friends Marty and Lorie enough for being here with us yesterday and making the arrangements to get Hey buried in a sunny spot on the property.  We talked about the trade-off we all make when we decide to have a pet. They will leave us too early and it will hurt badly but in return we get a few years of love and joy from  having them in our lives. The love we give and get from our furry friends is indeed a blessing.

I'll close with my favorite picture that we have of Hey, from about  2000 or so I think. Even with all our other pets around, his presence will be missed for a very long time.   Goodbye, sweet boy.

Comments

[Maria]

Bean & Donna -

I am so sorry about Hey. It sounds like you gave him the best life a cow could ever ask for. We'll be thinking about you. Maybe I'll make waffles this morning in his honor.

Maria & Nash

[Sheri]

Bean & Donna, I'm so sorry for your loss.

[Diane]

My deepest condolences to you and Donna on the loss of Hey.

[Jennifer]

Bean,

I'm choking back tears right now as I write this. I am so very sorry for your loss. I have known that same heartache of losing a beloved pet and family member many times, and it doesn't matter if that loved one lives in the house or the barn, the love is still the same. You and Donna are so blessed to have experienced such love with Hey, and that love will get you through these difficult times.

[me! =)]

I'm just wiping tears away over here!!! Oh Bean, I'm so sorry to hear about your loss.....He just looked so sweet..... Just remember that he'll always be with you.....

<3,
me

[HeatherMichelle]

OMG, I am crying at my desk. I am so sorry for your loss. You very eloquently put into words how I feel about my littlest family members and how much it hurts to lose one. Again, I am so sorry for your loss and you and Donna will be in my thoughts.

[Jennifer W.]

Oh, I'm so sorry for your loss. What a handsome boy!

[Heather]

Hi Bean...

Thank you for sharing your very personal thoughts with your loyal followers. We are all thinking of you and Donna. You are just never prepared when the time comes to say good-bye to a family member. Even if he moos.

[Geo]

I'm so sorry to read about your loss. I'm glad
to know he brought you so much joy.

[miharu]

Hey was absolutely beautiful and very lucky to have you come along. He's eating waffles on Pluto now...

[db]

RIP Hey

[TandJ]

That post choked me up.
Sorry for your loss.

[JP]

Sorry for your loss Bean and Donna.

[Jill]

your eloquent expression of love for your Steer, Hey breaks my heart.
I'm so sorry for your loss and now I have to go and hug my dogs and cat. Thanks for reminding how precious their short lives are.

[mel]

my deepest sympathies to you, donna and the rest of your family on the loss of this beautiful boy... he was a very very lucky steer to have found such a loving home... i am sure that cows go over the rainbow bridge and i know you guys will all meet up again one day...

[Chris]

Sorry to hear about the death. It is always hard to lose a pet.

[Dierdre Jean]

With tears in my eyes, I am sending my condolences to you and Donna on the loss of your beloved Hey. May all the wonderful memories you have of him sustain you through your grief.

[Kate]

I'll be thinking of you both today.

[Lisa]

Thanks for that touching post Bean. I love my sphynx cat to death and he's not even one year old yet. I treasure the fact that he'll be with us at least 10+ years, most likely....my parent's cat is 17 years old and I grew up with him since I was 9. I do get sad knowing his time will be coming soon, but like you said, the tradeoff is such a blessing. My thoughts go out to you and Donna and the rest of the farm animals. Hey will be missed.

[Kim]

There are no words - I am so sorry for you and Donna. Rest well, Hey.

[cathy g.]

Sending you & donna good thoughts and much love...

[K]

Bean & Donna - with deepest sympathy...

[karlee]

thanks captain bring down. now i am sad AND its monday.

p.s. i am glad he had parents that loved him. not like the um your tasty in this burger i love you, but the oh your soo cute love you.

[DanGarion]

Bean, I'm really sorry for your loss. I know you really love your animals.

Take care my friend.

[Chad]

I'm very sorry to hear about your loss. I'll miss hearing your stories about Hey. (Didn't you sometimes put an exclamation point at the end of his name?)

You have an excellent way of expressing your thoughts - I never knew it was possible to make me teary-eyed about a cow, but you've done it!

[Chris]

Love the picture with the snow. Wishing you and Donna all the best!

[EditThis]

Bean and Donna, I'm so sorry for your loss. I will miss hearing stories about Hey. It's the hardest thing about having animals in your family - they die too soon. That's why we have to love the hell out of them while they're with us. Hey sounds like he was a very lucky boy to have the two of you.

[Allie]

I'm so sorry Bean. You and Donna seem like the best parents Hey could have asked for. While the loss is horrible, its wonderful that you had each other in your lives for so many happy years.

[DeeJay]

Bean,
What a beautiful tribute. The loss of such a beloved pet is one of life's most painful events. As always, your words and photos create an expressive, emotional piece of literary goodness. The first picture is perfect. Condolences.

[LA]

My condolences to you and Donna. May Hey rest in peace, and may your 15 years of memories help ease your pain.

[Kari]

Bean & Donna,

I am so sorry for this loss. I remember the first time you ever blogged about Hey. I have thought about Hey since that time. This is heartbreaking.

You are awesome pet owners and understand that our pets are our loved ones too.

This is so overwhelming. You both are in my thoughts and prayers.

[Cam]

Bean and Donna,
I am so sorry for your loss. Hey was blessed to have such a peaceful and loving forever home. That's the trouble with the four-legged bunch, they can't tell you when they don't feel well. Such beautiful photographs of a beautiful boy. All the best...

[Rose]

Love and hugs to you and Donna and all the other special people and critters in Hey's life. I wish I were in a position to make a memorial donation in his name - c'mon, you know he would've loved knowing that he helped send a llama to Peru - but the best I can offer right now is that in memory of sweet Hey, today I did not yell at a cat who richly deserved it.

[alisa]

This is so sad. I fell in love with Hey years ago when I first heard you say his name. I'm so sorry. <3

[Andre]

Sorry for your loss.

[angie]

I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. My heart goes out to you and Donna and all the others on the farm who I'm sure will feel the loss as well.....

[JoAnna]

We will miss the pictures of Hey. I am so impressed with your great gift of capturing photographs. They are warm and beatutiful.Thanks for sharing your animal friends with us. "You had me at Hey" always enjoy your name selection for your furry friends

[Johnny Socko]

Hey was one of the first, if not THE first "large pet" that I ever heard you mention. If I recall correctly, "Norman", the pet cow that Billy Crystal jogged with in City Slickers 2, was a big inspiration for you. Or was it your idea first?

Either way, the idea that we're saying goodbye to Hey after so many years highlights just how long you were able to enjoy his company. In that respect, you were lucky.

[Karisa]

What a beautiful boy he was, my heart is with you and Donna.

Karisa

[Sara]

I'm sorry for your loss.

Hey was one sexy steer.

[michelle k]

brought me to tears. i am so sorry....

[Cynthia]

I'm sorry to hear of this, and yes, he certainly had a wonderful life with you guys.

[Carol]

I was shocked to read this post on Monday... I try to read your blog every week. The stories of animals are always my favorites. The loss of Hey has really touched me and brings back the bittersweet memories of my late pets. Even with all the other animals, Hey will always have a special place in your heart; just as each pet I've lost has a special place in mine. I wish you, Donna, Tater, and all the other animals peace during your time of grief.
I've been a big fan for over 15 years!
Lots of Love,
Carol

[roxanne]

You and your lovely wife are so super sweet. It takes so much to love and care for a pet. Thank you for being such good parents to Hey.

May he rest in peace.

[gerald]

wow bean donna is pretty hot
how about more pics

[Emily Alexis]

So sorry to hear the news Bean. I loved seeing the collection of pictures

[flaggerjeff]

It is heartbreaking to lose any family member and no matter the animal, they're all family members. I am saddened by your loss.

[Lynne_T]

Bean, what a beautiful animal. Sorry your time with Hey was cut short. You have had a hard year with your animals. Hope things improve. You are in my thoughts

[monica]

i am so sorry. he was lovely and i can tell you made each other happy. lucky you.

[Rochelle]

Aww, just read this, got back from a road trip - western Washington to Montana where we passed many a cow, and many new spring babies, and I couldn't help think of Hey every time I saw one. His memory lives on!