Editing For Better or For Worse (section)

===Farley's death===
Since the comic happens in real time, it became apparent that the Pattersons' first [[Old English Sheepdog]], Farley, was starting to get fairly old. When he is 14 years old (April 18, 1995), Farley saves four-year-old April from drowning in a stream near the Patterson home. Farley cannot take the shock of the cold water or the exertion of saving April and dies of a heart attack after getting April to shore.

The death provoked a lot of reaction from fans.  "People's emotions were kind of raw," said Johnston of the time. "I received 2,500 letters, about one-third negative. I didn't expect the response to be so great. The letters were open and emotional and honest and personal, full of stories and love."<ref name="spayandneuter">[http://www.y2spay.org/Gina1.htm Neutering Edgar], Gina Spadafori</ref>

When Johnston told fellow cartoonist (and close friend) [[Charles M. Schulz]] that Farley was going to die, Schulz jokingly "threatened to have [[Snoopy]] hit by a truck if Johnston went through with the plan".<ref name="eandp">[https://web.archive.org/web/20071011013858/http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003655528 Good Grief! Author Describes Bio of Charles M. Schulz — And Oldest Son Offers Critique] from the ''[[Editor & Publisher]]'' website</ref> In the end, Johnston kept the timing of Farley's death a secret from Schulz.<ref name="eandp"/>

The official ''For Better or For Worse'' website has a section dedicated to Farley; this includes the strips depicting his heroism and death, plus a selection of "Farley's Spirit" strips.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090218213649/http://www.fborfw.com/features/farley/ Remembering Farley] on the "For Better or For Worse" official website.</ref>  Farley was also named after Canadian author [[Farley Mowat]], a long-time friend of Johnston.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.farleyfoundation.org/extrapages/farley_namehistory.html |title=How Farley Got His Name |access-date=2017-01-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116164215/http://www.farleyfoundation.org/extrapages/farley_namehistory.html |archive-date=2017-01-16 }}</ref>

Johnston has allowed the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association (OVMA) to use Farley's name and likeness for the "Farley Foundation", a charity established by OVMA to subsidize the cost of veterinary care for pets of low-income seniors and persons with disabilities in Ontario.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.farleyfoundation.org/ |title=Farley Foundation |publisher=Farley Foundation |access-date=2012-01-19}}</ref>