Viewing entries in
In Memory of
Boo and Lily came into my life unexpectedly and changed my world forever. They were intelligent and beautiful and sadly, they died 18 months apart. The years with them were wonderfully memorable and losing them has left me without the greatest friends I've known. I am so thankful these two amazing creatures came into my life. With love from Barbara W.
Our beautiful Bitty was diagnosed with lymphoma in August 2011. Devastated by the news, we decided to treat him at BluePearl specialty hospital in Tampa. He was doing so well, that we thought we might have beaten the odds and he would be fine. This was not to be and Bitty lost his battle with this dreaded disease on 1/21/12. We could not have asked for better doctors and staff at BluePearl,who were so wonderful to Bitty and to us. We miss him terribly, as do his canine and feline siblings.
He will always be in our hearts and memories.
Love, Susan and Ron T.
In January, 2000, most of my family went to the county pound to pick out a playmate for my current dog, Charlie. New arrivals - eight part husky puppies - were in a pen together. Seven of the eight did look like husky puppies....then, there was one odd looking puppy, nearly all white (unlike his brothers and sisters) and pretty small. My eight year old niece keyed in on him immediately and thus, Miller Eugene Marler joined my family. Miller was always my sweet boy; quiet and introverted. He was a follower, not a leader. Playful as a young dog, he mellowed in mid age and became a wonderful companion to me. We would work outside in the yard together or watch TV together - Miller never complained about anything but taking a bath and stayed by my side whenever I was home.
I will miss my sweet boy, as others before him, but, Miller holds a special place in my heart. Miller understood when I was happy as well as when I was sad and reacted like a best friend would; smile or cry with me. He always understood me and probably was my best friend.
Miller died of cancer on September 26, 2011....only 11-1/2 years old. Much too young to go for his size. He was cremated and now rests beneath a beautiful red azalea in my back yard.
Stay sweet my little boy - I will always remember my dear friend and companion.
by Kathy Orchard Edie was a little terrier mix who came to live with us in the fall of 1999 when she was a little over a year old. My husband was working in Ft Myers at the time and only home on the weekends. I still had Beej, my older Bichon Frise, but wanted some additional companionship. I got Edie from someone at my work who didn’t want her anymore. I brought her home overnight on a trial basis and took her to my vet. Edie had some minor health issues and a bad yeast infection affecting her skin. She was so cute and I couldn’t bear to take her back to them so I kept her. (The prior owner told me she was “itchy” – no wonder! It took about a year to totally get rid of the yeast infection and it would reoccur from time to time over the years.) As my husband was away during the week, she grew very protective of me.
Her original name was Fifi, which did not fit her at all, since she was a scrappy little tomboy dog with a stubby tail. I wanted to give her another similar sounding name and “Edie” just seemed to fit her.
Edie loved squeaky toys from the very beginning and that love didn’t diminish over the years. If left to her own devices, she would squeak one continually until it was “dead”. Her favorite were the big jacks, with a squeaker in each end – 6 total. One jack might keep her going for weeks. Usually I would have to stitch toys up multiple times as she would practically shred it to bits before the squeaker would die. Sometimes I would have to give up and just take the squeaker out. Edie would tempt you with a toy and then duck under the dining room table because she never wanted you to actually take it from her. I was the only one who could; she would growl seriously at anyone else who tried. Edie and I always had fun playing with her toys together. And any holiday was an excuse for me to buy her a new one.
Edie slept with us and she usually slept right next to my pillow. Sometimes I would wake up and she would be the one on the pillow. I never really had to set the alarm. If it was daylight, Edie thought it was time to be up and out of bed. (I always looked forward to the time change when it would be dark in the morning.) If I didn’t get up when she wanted, she would practically stand on my head. On Saturdays, we would get up, I'd feed her, and we'd sit in my recliner. Sometimes we would both be asleep there when my husband got up. I bought a mug that says “I wish the dog had a snooze button.”
Edie would eat just about anything but never chewed her dog food. She sucked it up like a vacuum. My husband said we should have named her Hoover. I always gave her a minimal amount of “people food” each day. But we found out early on that we could not give her anything with eggs as they made her sick. She liked crunchy foods like rice cakes and romaine lettuce, which she would chew. But she loved lamb. When my husband was cooking lamb, she would spend the whole time underfoot, with My husband trying not to trip over her. I laughed at pet surveys that showed lamb way down on the list of flavors that dogs liked. Edie’s top three favorite flavors were lamb, lamb, and lamb.
Otherwise than being in the kitchen when my husband was cooking lamb, Edie didn’t like for me to be out of her sight. If I got up, she got up and followed me. If I went out front, she would climb up on the couch and look for me out the front window. When I worked out in the front yard, I had to take Edie outside with me. If I let her out into the backyard but my husband let her back inside, Edie would run through the house looking for me, not stopping until I was found. It really bothered her not knowing where I was.
When I'd come in the front door, she always came to greet me. If she liked you, she would come with a toy. But if anyone knocked on our door or rang the doorbell, she would bark and come running.
When Edie wanted something, she would stamp her little paws, rocking side to side, and make a gurgling noise. If that didn’t work, she would start barking. She would also do this if I was sitting at the computer. Edie didn’t like when that happened since it was not something that she could do with me.
One day I let Edie out in the back yard. When after a while she hadn’t returned to the door, I looked outside but couldn’t see her. So I walked out in the yard and saw that the side gate had been left open. I walked around, looking frantically for her and calling her name very loudly. Not finding her, I rushed back inside and went out the front door, nearly falling over her. She had been by the front door, waiting patiently to be let in. I think she knew she lived the good life and wasn’t about to run away from it. My husband called her the most spoiled dog in south Tampa. And I would always say, just spoiled with love.
We took a walk just about every evening and also on Sunday mornings. On Sundays we would take a longer walk and get the Sunday paper while we were out. I walked her every weeknight after work, when she had been cooped up a day, unless there was severe weather. After our evening walks, she got a Kong treat kept in freezer that had a peanut butter-flavored filling and treat in it. After we got back from our walk, if I sat down before she got it, she would come and stare at me and make a fuss. She always knew if she’d had her treat or not, even if she’d eaten dinner in between. She never forgot.
Our weekday routine was just that, routine. Once the alarm went off, Edie was up and there was no going back to sleep. She and I were usually the first ones up so we would go out and get the newspaper in the driveway. She liked to lick my legs after I got out of the shower. But if Edie thought I was taking too long a shower, or if she heard me and my husband talking, she would bark and/or scratch on the bathroom door. While I was getting ready for work, she would lay quietly on the floor, watching me. When I left the house, she always got a dog treat. Sometime you could tell she was thinking, “Hurry up and leave already so I can have my treat!” At the end of the day, whichever one of us got home would let her outside. But sometimes when my husband would get home before me, Edie would wait for me to come home before she would go out. So as soon as I walked in the door, she would start barking at me to let her outside. We could never figure this out. Of course, my husband would make sure she went out if he knew I was not coming home right away. In the evenings, we would have our walk. Only rarely would Edie go into our bedroom to go to sleep without me being in there. She liked to hang out with me until I went to bed.
Up until her last few weeks, Edie was very active and playful and you’d never have guessed that she was sick. She passed from this life on June 6, 2011, just 10 days before her 13th birthday. Edie was a beloved and faithful companion that will be missed by all those who loved her.
Mutt lost his two-year battle with cancer on June 22, 2010. He left behind his family; William & Dorothy Thompson; one brother, Little Jake; and three sisters, Lady, Neesha and Boots. Mutt was born in early 1999. His mother's body was dumped in the woods on Ridge Road, south of Excelsior Springs, Mo. After she had her pups, she was shot and killed. On March 24, 1999, Mutt became part of our family, along with our other four dogs.
From the first day, Mutt was very special. He could sleep anywhere he wanted and he always got along with other members of our family.
After Mutt came to live with us, someone dumped a little Beagle pup, which we named Jake. Once Jake started to hunt, Mutt and Jake were always together. Sometimes they'd be gone for hours. We could always hear Jake, but Mutt never barked. Whenever I went to look for them, they were always together. I believe Mutt was telling Jake to be quiet, so that they could catch rabbits.
We have had 17 dogs and one cat during our 49 years together, all have been special, but Mutt was exceptional.
There are a lot more stories about Mutt, but the real story is: we loved Mutt and he loved us and when my time comes, I know Mutt will be there for me.
William
Apollo was the sweetest cat anybody could have ever hoped for. When I picked him out at the animal shelter, he was the only kitten in his litter climbing the cage door. I knew right then that he was the one. I'll always remember how he loved to play fetch with his favorite mouse toy and with any ball of paper he could get his paws on. Sadly, your life was cut far too short by lymphoma but I will always treasure the four years we had together and I know you're waiting for me on the Rainbow Bridge. I love you, Apollo!! (18 March 2006 - 5 September 2010) Dustin
Dolce Gia blessed us with her life for almost four wonderful years. God broke the mold when he created this sweet little Maltese, even with her Chronic Rhinitis. She was truly the best thing to ever happen to our family & we miss her terribly. WE LOVE YOU DOLCE GIA!!!
Ron and I rescued Peugot seven years ago but I really think he rescued us. He was a wonderful dog. Howard & Ron
Desmo was diagnosed with brain cancer in March 2009 and within a month, passed on from our family (shortly after his 6th birthday). A day doesn't go by that we don't miss him (I swear I can sometimes hear his collar jingling!). He had such a gentle and loving soul. We love you Mister Desmo.
Elmo loved to play ball and his favorite game was keep away. He would chase the ball whenever it was thrown for him, but getting it back from him was almost impossible and all our human antics were his favorite part of the game. He would gallop about with the ball in his mouth until you stopped chasing him. Then he would lie down and watch over his ball until someone in the room moved again. Then he would grab up his ball and stand ready to run if you came anywhere near him. It was great fun to watch him enjoy keeping the ball away from us. Every great once in a while, if he felt he was being ignored, he would bring his ball and drop it at the feet of an unsuspecting sucker and the game would begin again as soon as the ball was thrown. Elmo could be in the middle of playing a game with someone and all I had to do was take his harness off the hook and he would immediately drop the ball and come to me. He loved to play, but he loved to work even more. Thank you to NYC Veterinary Specialists for giving me the last two months with Elmo. It was a gift of immeasurable value to me.
our vibrant dolly was found on the streets in decatur, alabama and lived through several more lives before coming to live with us in 2003. she was undimmed by her negative experiences and kept us smiling with her joyful daily antics. she taught our other dog, a rescued traumatized dachshund, how to be a real dog and the two of them became a team who schemed to manipulate us into giving more treats and succeeded! dolly stood on our toes if we failed to respond! her humor, courage, and fine character will live on in our hearts as we send her on her way surrounded by love.
For Pepper: In her final days, she brought us all together and reminded us about the true meaning of love and devotion. Thank you, Pepper.
It is with great respect that this posting is made in memory of Mabel who was a beautiful dog, a true friend, and a brave warrior. We also wish to honor her loving dad and faithful companion, Martin.
Taken too soon, memories of your softness and sweetness will remain with your human family always.
The day you careened into our family’s life as a white fluff-ball was a great day. We miss you, but know you are basking away in your special sunspot in heaven right next to Rocci. Rest well, at peace and pain free, sweet Luci. We’ll see you when we cross the Rainbow Bridge.
