Barnabus was rescued from a drug house on Christmas day of 2004. Knowing that he was a pitbull/mastiff mix, we were always extremely careful with him around people and other dogs. We worked with him constantly until he was able to go camping and quad riding with us. He developed cancer at around age seven, but it was operable and the surgery was successful. We were told that it could reoccur later in his pancreas. As he got older, we made a bucket list for him, which included traveling to Venice Beach, California, and back to my deceased parents farm in Ohio. He made both of these journeys. On the trip to the farm, I could tell that his health was failing, but he was a trouper, being strong and completing the trip as if he was not in pain. A week after we returned to Arizona, I made an appointment with the veterinarian. The night before the appointment, we took our last swim together, and although he could only complete one lap with my help, he gladly did so. Hours before his trip to the vet, he collapsed, and had to be rushed to an emergency clinic. They removed his spleen, gave him blood and plasma transfusions, but in the end cancer took his life. Barnabus was my best friend, my beloved, and my soul mate. Although I have other dogs now, who I love deeply, no one will ever replace Barnabus.