No-holds-barred comic Sarah Silverman is probably best known for getting big laughs by pushing the envelope. But this week, after the passing of her beloved dog, Duck, Silverman moved people to tears with a touching tribute to her longtime furry companion.
The Jesus is Magic star and frequent Comedy Central Roast contributor adopted Duck, a Chihuahua–Pug mix, 14 years ago from a rescue shelter in Van Nuys. Since then the two had become inseparable, even appearing together on Silverman’s Comedy Central series, The Sarah Silverman Program.
Little Duck was 19 years at the time of his death. Silverman broke the sad news of her loss September 4 on her Twitter feed, @SarahKSilverman.
“It always tickled me that even though we were different species He was my best friend,” Silverman wrote of Duck. “Duck left me today but I forgive him.”
Silverman then wrote what she calls an “obituary type thing” on WhoSay, calling Duck “a happy dog, though serene. And stoic.”
“And he loved love,” Silverman added.
Duck’s health had started to deteriorate over the years, the little dog becoming blind, deaf, and arthritic. Until quite recently, Silverman explains, Duck still seemed comfortable.
“He needs at least 23 hours of sleep a day, or else he’s not himself,” Silverman told People of Duck just last month. “But then in that one hour [that he’s awake], he’s so peppy it’s crazy. We take walks, watch TV, we cuddle.”
But when Duck stopped eating, Silverman writes in the obituary, she knew it was time to say goodbye.
Silverman ends her heartfelt post with a moving summary of the bond she shared with her beloved Duck:
“14 years. My longest relationship. My only experience of maternal love. My constant companion. My best friend. Duck.”
Fans from all around the globe are offering their sympathies online.
“Beautiful Sarah, So sorry,” one commenter writes. “You gave Duck the best possible life and love & he gave you joy companionship & unconditional love, what could be more beautiful.”
“I am so sorry for your loss,” writes another. “He will be with you always in your heart and in Spirit. Blessings to you, Duck and all who loved him.”
Even actor Alec Baldwin, who famously left Twitter behind in June, returned to the social networking site to pay his condolences.
“For @SarahKSilverman, who turned the dial on my day to the right frequency…” Baldwin tweeted, including a photograph of the dogs he shares with wife, Hilaria.
A still grieving but grateful Silverman took to her Twitter Wednesday night to thank her friends, colleagues, and her millions of caring fans for their support, her trademark sense of humor in tact.
“So moved by everyone’s condolences…” Silverman writes. “REALLY starting to understand this Munchausen by proxy thing…”
To read Duck’s obituary in its entirety, visit Sarah Silverman’s WhoSay page.
Sources: WhoSay.com, The Hollywood Reporter, People
