[UNCONFIRMED] Second Hand Ghost Dog

[Mototweed8200]

I cannot verify if this story is true, as it was told to me by someone else. Buy what I know about the subject it could be.
The story is as follows: A person who was down in the dumps, had decided to end it all and went to the beach with a quart of booze, and the intent was to drink enough and then go for a long swim. After drinking about a third of the bottle, they heard a whining behind them. When they turn around, they saw a male Golden Retriever with a stick in its mouth. The retriever dropped the stick and waited for then to throw it. The thing that they noticed was the dog had a big black spot on its tongue, which is normal for a lot of breeds. At first, they yelled at the dog to leave, but the dog just kept on picking the stick and dropping it. Finally, the person just threw the stick hoping the dog would leave. But the dog just kept coming back. At some point the person realized that maybe life was not as bad as it seemed. They packed their thing and threw the stick as far as they could and left.
A few months later they returned to the beach to find the owner of the dog and tell them that it may have saved them. He asked a few people if they knew anyone who owned a Golden Retriever with a black spot on its tongue. Someone said to talk to the Blakes as they have Goldens. They went to the house and knocked on the door. A lady in her sixty's answered the door and beside her was a Golden, but not the same one, this dog was smaller and lighter. They told her that story but said that the dog that was with her, could not be the same. Could she have another Golden besides this one? She paused for a moment and said “that must have been Traveler, he always like to help people out”. “Can I see him” they asked? “Sure, just wait a moment,” she said she turn and went inside. She returned with an urn with a picture of a Golden on it. Here’s Traveler, he died about four years ago. The person went pall. When the lady saw the reaction, she said “you’re not the first-person Traveler has helped in some way over these past years, and hopefully not the last”

[MidnightRunner]

I feel like I've heard this story before also, but with some variations. I'd say more, but I'll wait until we finish talking about the direction the forum is going.