Stories and rants and raves about the animals in my life, human included, but mostly our border collies and kitties.
Tess
Will somebody play with me?
Sonic
Did somebody say "cookie"?
Rooney
Gorgeous and knows it.
Sportz (RIP Dec. 2009)
I'm the REAL boss in this house
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Shall We Dance?
Tess and Ali ready to dance.
Tess is learning to walk upright. Maybe soon she'll be bringing me coffee in bed!!
Our speed weave. The dogs just love doing this. They energize one another. Of course, if one goes over the top, then they both go. It's still fun though.
Also known as the lady who dances with her dogs. Just another fun thing to keep our border collies amused.
When I'm not dog dancing, I can be found hiking and running the local trails in Burns Bog, Buntzen Lake, Watershed Park and occasionally, when the mood strikes me, the North Shore Mountains. Of course, Sonic and Tess are never far behind. Actually, I'm the one behind and they are always nudging me to get me to run faster.
For all of you who have had the honor to love and be loved by a dog, you will know the pain I am feeling right now. This week, I had to have my Oreo put to sleep. I have had people say to me, "Why the tears? She was just a dog." It made me stop and wonder why can I shed so many tears over this dog when I couldn't shed a tear when my mother died 2 years ago. This is my answer to them....and me. You were many things, but you were never just a dog. You were a canine comedian, a stomach on four legs, chaser of squirrels and birds, and at times my lifeline. You loved unconditionally and never judged. From you, I never heard that I was too fat or couldn't do anything right. I knew you were special from the day I brought you home. You were so full of exuberance and mischief, and even as you aged, you never lost that love of life. You could always make me laugh, although sometimes a long time after the fact. (I'll never forget the day you carried the sprinkler around while it was running and sat it in front of the open bedroom window). When I was diagnosed as clinically depressed, you and your canine companion never left my side. All the nights I couldn't sleep, you shared your couch with me and sat patiently while I cried into your fur. . Through the break-up of my marriage and my mother's illness, you always stayed close.....sensing what I needed. Because of you, I kept going when I wanted to die When I found the first lump, I tried to convince myself that it would be alright, that the surgery would fix everything. I didn't know how sick you were and you, being always patient and cheerful, never let on. You fought it right up till the end, when I took you for that last walk and let you run and chase the birds and squirrels to your heart's content. As I sat with you in the vet's office, trying to imprint in my memory the softness of your ears, the love and trust in your brown eyes, trying to hold on to that, and you.....but I knew I had to let you go. I know that in time, I will be able to think of you and smile, but right now, there is an 80 pound hole in my chest where you were in my heart. So, to me, you were never just a dog. Where ever you are, Oreo, this is to you with love. Oreo Jan. 27, 1988 - July 4, 2000
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