This page is dedicated to the dear four legged fury creatures that touch our lives in remarkable ways. Please feel free to submit a picture of your pet and their life story so that they can be honored.
If your pet has passed, you may find a great deal of comfort in Rainbow Bridges. This website is dedicated to helping owners with their grief when a pet has passed away. There web address is
http://www.petloss.com
"A good man will take care of his horses and dogs, not only while they are young, but also when they are old and past service" ~ Plutarch
CHAOSChaos came into our life in August of 1996 – one week after we said goodbye to our 7 ½ year old Cocker cross Badger. We had planned on waiting until the next Spring to get a puppy, but we saw an ad in the paper for black and white Springer spaniels and as we had never seen the black and white version of this breed, thought that we'd check them out "just to take a look". What clinched it was when we both pointed at one puppy at the same time and agreed that "she's so cute"! We left with Chaos. No food for her, no leash, no anything and we were going camping for the weekend with a 3-month old puppy! The weather was awful, Darren got sick, but we had Chaos to take care of and she was the priority!
On our first walks with Chaos, she would hide in the tall grass and jump out at us, and when she was tired, she would simply stop walking. I still remember the day when we walked her a total of about eight miles – the poor girl was so tired the next day! I believe all the walking and exercise played a huge role in Chaos living to 15 ½ years.
Over the last couple of years, Chaos started to slow down. She struggled a bit more in the snow, and the grey really started to show. We knew that this upcoming winter would be hard on her, as she was also getting a bit unsteady on her feet.
At the beginning of September of this year, Chaos developed a bladder infection, and started drinking a lot more water than usual and consequently peeing a lot more. She was wandering the house at night, barking aimlessly, showing signs of confusion, and having "liquid" accidents in the house - shortly after she was diagnosed with Cognitive Dysfunction Disorder – doggy dementia. The excessive drinking and peeing continued and after several tests, she was diagnosed with Diabetes Insipidus – a rare human disease characterized by the inability of the bladder to concentrate urine. Hormone drops that should have worked, didn't. Then Chaos developed another bacterial infection and stopped eating her food. Her vet confirmed that Chaos' quality of life was suffering, and we made the very difficult decision that we had no choice to make. We were so hoping that Chaos would simply fall asleep and not wake up and leave this world on her terms, but it wasn't meant to be. On November 10th we brought her to the vet clinic and gave her two Timbits (her favorite treat) and said goodbye. It took not 3 seconds for her little body to go limp in my arms – it was like she was saying "Thank you – I know you did your best to take care of me, but I have to go now".
Fudge
AmillieAmillie is a one of a kind. If you believe dogs have personality, well she had one that was unique. Amillie loves to be a dog and is happiest at an off leash park, playing and running but keeping a watchful eye on her owner. She would never stray too far, but would never miss out on fun.
Although Amillie behaved well in public, if she felt she needed to bark, well, she just did! Anywhere, anyone, anytime she wanted. Especially at men wearing hats. She had an issue with men wearing hats. Interesting though, she was well behaved in Church, never barking there, even at men with hats. Hmmm, can't figure that one out.
Amillie loved to cuddle especially on the bed. If Amillie wanted to do something she did it. Again this speaks to her personality. Amillie was not successful graduating to the next level (CNIB Service Dog), but she definitely succeeded at being a great companion.
Date of birth: unknown
Guess Age: between 2 1/2 and 3 years of age
Mr. Westcott came into our lives the day after Valentine�s Day in 2006. He was a stray that someone heard whimpering, rescued and did not want. I offered to help keep the puppy until the rightful owners claimed him. Lucky for all of us, no one came for him. It was love at first sight. I didn�t know what to think of the little guy at first. What was he? He was short, stumpy & really really long and had the sweetest face with these really long ears too. As he grew, it became apparent that Mr. Westcott was - obviously - a basset hound wearing a border collie suit. There could be no other explanation! Going up the stairs was always interesting for him, he would stop halfway to look back and in perplex confusion tried to figure out why his back half was still �back there� and the rest of him was �up here�. He was a character and pretty much insisted every single being pay all their attention to him. If someone was to get a hug, he was right there, waiting to get the next hug. He couldn�t sit on the couch or lie on the bed without touching someone, preferably you : )
Every single day, Mr. Westcott and I went into Muskeg Creek trails in Athabasca, Alberta. While I varied my exercise, he out ran me 100 times. I never had to worry about him when I let him loose... he was never a nuisance to other people or their dogs. He was in the bush � hunting, chasing, sniffing... who really knew. I envisioned that he was on a quest � the quest to find the hidden rabbit cave. I think he was close to discovering its true location.
He could sit, shake a paw, lay down, wait, twirl around, catch. He loved to chase the ball. He loved to climb snowbanks and slide down them. He loved long road trips. He loved my parents cabin in Manitoba. Loved my dad whom he knew as �Stan the Man� and instantly recognized the sound of HIS diesel truck pulling into the driveway. Full of adventure, full of personality, full of life.
He met an unfortunate end with a violence attack by my neighbor�s two uncontrolled dogs.
If Mr. Westcott taught me anything, its that you need to embrace every single day! Run, jump, bark, have your belly petted, eat well, sleep comfortably but rest up because we get to do this all over again tomorrow!!!
RIP Mr. Westcott.
Ginger On March 17, 2010, Ginger went in for a routine spay and dental cleaning. It was discovered that she had a tumor on her kidney, fluid in her belly and had deformed organs. She did not survive the surgery. I am glad that I was able to be a part of her life even if it was only for a short while. Knowing that I was able to make her last days, happy ones justifies all the work that I do with rescue regardless if they end happy or not.