Sad Story

A Story of Love That Never Grew Old

They say time heals all wounds. But anyone who has ever loved an animal knows that is not quite true. Time does not heal those wounds — it only teaches us how to live with them. Today, I would like to share a sad, and yet unbelievably beautiful story with you. The story of our Ken.

It was 2016. For some, just another ordinary year. For us, the year the world stopped turning. We had to say goodbye to our best dog buddy. Ken was not just a dog. He was our partner, the quiet witness to our beginnings, our joys, and our falls. He was a fighter with a huge heart.

For his whole life, he wore one very specific collar around his neck. The very first one — a leather collar we made for him by hand in our Slade Czech workshop. Back then, we had no idea that this piece of leather would become part of him. That it would turn into a symbol. And that, in the end, Ken himself would become the symbol and face of our whole company.

He wore it with such pride, as if he knew he was carrying a piece of our family soul around his neck.

The Hardest Day

Then came that fateful day. The day every dog owner fears. The day when you see that strange tiredness in your best friend’s eyes, and you know it is time to let them go. Saying goodbye hurt so much it cannot even be put into words. Anyone who has not lived through it cannot truly understand that emptiness when you come home and no claws are tapping across the floor.

But Ken never truly left. He became our guardian spirit. We found the most beautiful place in the world for him — he rests in the garden, beneath his beloved linden tree, in the shade where he loved to cool his paws in summer.

And then we did something that might seem strange to some people, maybe even a little crazy. We took his collar and leash and hung them there. Right on a branch of that linden tree. We wanted to be sure that even though his paws no longer run across the yard, his presence would never leave us.

Seven Years in the Wind

It has been seven long years now. Seven years since that collar and leash were hung on the tree. The leather has seen summer heat, autumn rain, and winter frost. Whenever the wind blows, the collar moves ever so slightly, as if Ken had just risen from the grass and stretched himself.

There is not a single day when we do not look at that branch. Not a single day when we do not remember what it felt like to bury our hands in his coat. Is it sad? Yes, terribly. Does it hurt? Every single day. But fate wrote it this way, and we have to accept it. It is part of life.

And even though there is still a piece of sadness in our hearts, one thing warms us. We know Ken is still watching over us and protecting us. From above, from his linden tree, he keeps an eye on every step we take and every stitch we make in the workshop. And we know that we gave him the very best life. We were the best human-and-dog team he could have wished for. And he knew it.

Thank you for everything, Ken. We will never forget.

Do you feel the same way? Do you also have an animal hero at home or in your memories, one who was an inseparable part of your life? Write their name in the comments. Let us remember our furry guardian angels together.

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