Requiem for Bentley

I didn't know Bentley, but I was there when he died. There was a group of us there, but Bentley is the only name I know.

I believe Bentley was a good dog who had a good life with a family that loved him. While his death was a sad thing, the fact that a group of strangers came to his aid gives me hope.

I was eastbound on Peoria Avenue in Glendale, Arizona. The car in front of me stopped. I didn't know why until he pulled into the next lane, and I saw Bentley injured in the street. Apparently he had been hit by a car. The driver who hit him didn't stop, but other people did and, in the process, showed a lot of compassion.

One woman stood out. I stopped my car behind Bentley so no other cars would hit him. The woman put Bentley's head in her lap, and petted and comforted him. I got a sheet and a man held it up to shade Bentley. His wife managed to corral Bentley's dog friends who were across the street barking and distressed. She managed to get them back in their yard. We also called 911. They in-turn called Glendale Fire Department and the Arizona Humane Society and one of its Emergency Animal Medical Technician (EAMT) units.

Bentley died in the arms of the wonderful woman whose name I don't know. We were both petting him when he died. I truly believe she made Bentley's death better for him. He had some comfort and the love of a complete stranger as he passed. After he died we moved him out of the street. A man came-up and said "That's my dog." He was obviously sad, but calm. Apparently his dogs had gotten out of the yard while he was away. He told us he wanted to take Bentley home, so we helped wrap Bentley in the sheet and he headed across the street to go home.

A Glendale Police Officer pulled-up, and asked if I'd seen what happened. I said "No, but I wish I had." He gave me his card, and I left.

The woman said she wished that she could have saved Bentley or gotten him to hang-on. But I think she gave him a peaceful death. Everyone there, including the City of Glendale Fire and Police Department, gave him something else. Respect. They treated him like an individual who was scared and fatally injured in the street. That's no small thing, but that's what Bentley deserved. That's what all animals deserve.