Well I have a deep love for dogs and in a way this can be a metaphor like if a dog were a human and when the dog was on its last leg about to pass away the song title makes a lot of sense. The owner could be grown and is coming back to see his boyhood best friend before he dies. And in the song where it says I only knew him as my father it could be replaced with best friend. I know this is mainly about a son returning to his father who has a mental disease and might in the way of dying but this interpretation is also a good one to look at for all pet owners who lost a best friend in an animal.
Well I have a deep love for dogs and in a way this can be a metaphor like if a dog were a human and when the dog was on its last leg about to pass away the song title makes a lot of sense. The owner could be grown and is coming back to see his boyhood best friend before he dies. And in the song where it says I only knew him as my father it could be replaced with best friend. I know this is mainly about a son returning to his father who has a mental disease and might in the way of dying but this interpretation is also a good one to look at for all pet owners who lost a best friend in an animal.