Beloved Chocolate the dog dies

Sarah and Kurt Weidner brought Chocolate, their dear Chesapeake Bay retriever, to the vet on Veterans Day for a checkup. Little did they know he would not be coming home with them.

They made the difficult choice to have the 9-year-old pet put down after learning he had lymphoma.

The loss was a sad end for a dog who had a tough life, but was beloved throughout the Tri-Cities.

“He passed away peacefully in my arms,” Kurt Weidner said. “I laid down with him and stayed with him the whole time.”

Chocolate’s tumors had gotten so big that they were pressing on his bowels, Sarah Weidner said.

“I could not ask him to fight that fight, not after everything he’d been through,” she said Wednesday, fighting back tears.

The Weidners adopted Chocolate in 2008 after he was found abandoned with two broken front legs in a field off Highway 395 north of Pasco.

An outpouring of community support for Chocolate came in after a medical fund, overseen by Meadow Hills Veterinary Clinic, raised $29,500 in donations.

That money was all spent on Chocolate’s many medical bills, Sarah Weidner said.

Washington State University’s veterinary school repaired Chocolate’s front legs and provided physical therapy for him for five months, for a heavily discounted $19,000. Two follow-up visits to WSU totaled nearly $1,300.

His care at Meadow Hills while a committee searched for a family to adopt him, cost about $1,500. He also required the use of two prosthetic splints for his legs during his rehabilitation, at a cost of $1,100.

Three of his toenails also had to be amputated by the Richland Animal Hospital, costing about $1,700.

Chocolate suffered another setback in 2013, when he was bitten by a venomous spider. The bite turned into a 10-by-3 inch open wound. He was able to overcome the bite with antibiotics and painkillers.

Chocolate always had an obsession for toys, particularly the grungy yellow ball he was found with.

The Weidners still have their 5-year-old chocolate Lab, Mojo, and have been planning to get another puppy before they lost Chocolate, Sarah Weidner said.

“It kind of makes me sad,” she said. “I wanted Chocolate to help teach the puppy.”

The family is grateful for the assistance of the Tri-City community.

“They have offered just endless support to Chocolate and to my husband and I,” Sarah Weidner said. “That has meant everything to us.”

This story was originally published December 2, 2015 at 6:38 PM with the headline "Beloved Chocolate the dog dies."