Tribute to My Beloved Akita Rex

by Wayne
(Madison, Alabama, USA)

Rex Miller
Formal name: Ronan’s King of Carnival at Shinto
Born August 22, 2011 - Died August 3, 2021 4:07 pm

Rex has been such a blessing to us. He became part of our family when he was 19 months of age after obtaining his AKC Championship.

I had met Rex briefly at his breeder's kennel when he was 6 months old but had not seen him since that time. When we lost another Akita, our breeder offered to let us have Rex.

I don't know if Rex remembered me or not but when we met with our breeder on March 7, 2013, Rex walked outside with me, jumped into the back of my SUV, went to sleep and slept the entire 2 hour drive home.

When we got home, he went into the house and acted as if he had lived there forever. It was if it was meant for him to be with us. He never once in his life bothered anything in the house that was not his.

For the next 8 years, he was a constant companion to my wife and me. He went on all vacations, weekend trips, etc. and was always the perfect gentleman. He loved to be with his humans.

He never met a child that he did not love immediately, although he could be aloof with some adults. He was a sweet, loving, faithful, and loyal Akita who was a perfect ambassador for his breed. Always watching and protecting us but never aggressive.

A few weeks ago Rex started to show less interest in his food and also stumbled a few times so we made a trip to the vet to see what was wrong. The diagnosis was advanced age-related degenerative spondylosis of the spine and that he was in pain.

Pain meds were given and Rex improved for a few weeks and returned to eating, although he was not as excited to eat as he had always been. Last week, he sometimes refused food and was stumbling and actually fell a few times, so back to the vet.

He was given more meds but this time they did not relieve his pain. He was really having a difficult time moving so we made the decision to let him go over the Rainbow Bridge yesterday afternoon.

Every morning for the past 8 years, he has woken us up promptly between 6 am and 6:15 am, but of course this morning we missed him being our alarm clock.

We miss you, Rex, in so many ways. We miss your funny antics and the rituals that you had each and every day of your life. My heart is broken today and will be for a long time.

I will never forget the wonderful times that we have had over the past 8 years. The precious memories that we have of our time together will be with us forever.

Rest In Peace my sweet Rex. You were my buddy, friend and pal. I will always love and miss you!!