The Hagan Fund
Donation protected
For the last three years, I've tried to think about what I'd say to all of my friends when the time came that I had to say goodbye to my best friend, Hagan.... I wrote countless letters and poems but none seemed to really be perfect enough to express the love I have for such a loving soul; so I threw them out and decided to, instead, enjoy his days for however long we had together….
Today, Hagan told me it was time. He knew, I believe, that over the past few years I have surrounded myself with a fantastic network of friends and a loving family and that I’d be taken care of when he was gone.
From day one, Hagan didn’t leave my side. When I went to see the group of puppies, he immediately came to me and wouldn’t leave my lap. I was asked if I wanted to see the “pick of the litter” and I told them no, I had already found my puppy and he had found me. She then was happy since he was “pick of the litter.” From then on, he never left my side. He never needed a leash, always knew what I was thinking, and always ate what he shouldn’t eat. Hagan came to parties with me, came on dates with me, hiking trips, camping trips, and was my personal warning signal for crazy when I brought a prospective date home (he would bloat and really kill the mood, thus putting a quick halt to that particular female). He helped me go further into student debt but learn canine anatomy and physiology quickly when he ate 18 lbs of cat food, ejaculated all over the bathroom during a bath when he was a puppy (sorry mom), ate a full cannister of xylitol-laced gum requiring detox, developed a scrotal hematoma the size of a grapefruit, and limped for five minutes when I was in veterinary school causing a significant “Greg-panic-attack” resulting in me pursuing a CT immediately (coincidentally when I found my love for 3-D CT reconstructions)..
He had acted as my personal bodyguard when my apartment was broken into when I lived in Arizona and quite possibly saved my life, he acted as my canine pin cushion during veterinary school, my passenger in most - if-not-all - car trips, my jogging partner (we tired after a few steps during our jobs so it was appreciated he was as inept as I was during our “exercise”), my water buddy, and a warm and gentle soul who accepted EVERY single pet I brought into the house teaching them the ways….. More importantly, Hagan carried me through some very dark times; times where I doubted myself and my self-worth. He kept me going. He knew my secrets and my flaws but still looked at me with unlimited love and devotion.
Although I knew he couldn’t be by my side forever, knowing that tonight I will go to bed and wake up without him is absolutely heartbreaking. Throughout the last 13 years, this guy has been my one constant, confidant, and partner in crime. He's watched me upgrade from a bedroom that leaked every time it rained, to when I lived in a basement with two loud children and their very curious and snooping mother living above us, to the lake house I always promised him. I have taken him cross country to see the Grand Canyon, a rest stop in New Mexico when our car broke down with 75 defrosting tamales, the mountains and Colorado skies, and the microbreweries that reside in those great states... I have fulfilled my second promise I made to him when he was a puppy; he will never know what pain and suffering is…..
Hagan, I would walk to the ends of the Earth for you and will find you someday to spend an eternity getting into mischief in the heavens together; please make sure there is good beer and scotch!
So many people are to thank for helping me give Hagan a long and loved life. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford to pursue such life-changing treatments as Hagan received during his last few years and I’d like to change that. If Hagan has touched your life in some way or another, and if you know me you know that I never ask for donations/money, I ask that you donate (even $1). All proceeds will go to a fund that will help the less fortunate and their pets at the veterinary hospitals that helped me have a lot of extra quality time with him.
I love you, Hagan.
Today, Hagan told me it was time. He knew, I believe, that over the past few years I have surrounded myself with a fantastic network of friends and a loving family and that I’d be taken care of when he was gone.
From day one, Hagan didn’t leave my side. When I went to see the group of puppies, he immediately came to me and wouldn’t leave my lap. I was asked if I wanted to see the “pick of the litter” and I told them no, I had already found my puppy and he had found me. She then was happy since he was “pick of the litter.” From then on, he never left my side. He never needed a leash, always knew what I was thinking, and always ate what he shouldn’t eat. Hagan came to parties with me, came on dates with me, hiking trips, camping trips, and was my personal warning signal for crazy when I brought a prospective date home (he would bloat and really kill the mood, thus putting a quick halt to that particular female). He helped me go further into student debt but learn canine anatomy and physiology quickly when he ate 18 lbs of cat food, ejaculated all over the bathroom during a bath when he was a puppy (sorry mom), ate a full cannister of xylitol-laced gum requiring detox, developed a scrotal hematoma the size of a grapefruit, and limped for five minutes when I was in veterinary school causing a significant “Greg-panic-attack” resulting in me pursuing a CT immediately (coincidentally when I found my love for 3-D CT reconstructions)..
He had acted as my personal bodyguard when my apartment was broken into when I lived in Arizona and quite possibly saved my life, he acted as my canine pin cushion during veterinary school, my passenger in most - if-not-all - car trips, my jogging partner (we tired after a few steps during our jobs so it was appreciated he was as inept as I was during our “exercise”), my water buddy, and a warm and gentle soul who accepted EVERY single pet I brought into the house teaching them the ways….. More importantly, Hagan carried me through some very dark times; times where I doubted myself and my self-worth. He kept me going. He knew my secrets and my flaws but still looked at me with unlimited love and devotion.
Although I knew he couldn’t be by my side forever, knowing that tonight I will go to bed and wake up without him is absolutely heartbreaking. Throughout the last 13 years, this guy has been my one constant, confidant, and partner in crime. He's watched me upgrade from a bedroom that leaked every time it rained, to when I lived in a basement with two loud children and their very curious and snooping mother living above us, to the lake house I always promised him. I have taken him cross country to see the Grand Canyon, a rest stop in New Mexico when our car broke down with 75 defrosting tamales, the mountains and Colorado skies, and the microbreweries that reside in those great states... I have fulfilled my second promise I made to him when he was a puppy; he will never know what pain and suffering is…..
Hagan, I would walk to the ends of the Earth for you and will find you someday to spend an eternity getting into mischief in the heavens together; please make sure there is good beer and scotch!
So many people are to thank for helping me give Hagan a long and loved life. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford to pursue such life-changing treatments as Hagan received during his last few years and I’d like to change that. If Hagan has touched your life in some way or another, and if you know me you know that I never ask for donations/money, I ask that you donate (even $1). All proceeds will go to a fund that will help the less fortunate and their pets at the veterinary hospitals that helped me have a lot of extra quality time with him.
I love you, Hagan.
Organizer
Greg Costanzo
Organizer
Algonquin Hills, VA