As I enter the twilight of my life, I think back to the many dogs that have shared my life. The first was Blackie. She was really my mom’s dog. I was around 6 or 7 when she passed. The next two were Queenie and Blondie. They were really the first dogs that were truly mine. They were with me into my teen years. Next came Mitzie. She was really a wonder. Not that she did a lot of tricks or anything, but she did have a cup that she would take around to the neighbors houses and beg for food. Mitzie died while I was in the navy. Later, after I was married, came Sampson and Bandit. Bandit was a Terrier and Dachshund mix, and was kind of funny looking. Sampson was a Shepherd and Collie mix that looked like a wolf. He wasn’t really good with our kids, but he might have saved them from harm, once. They were playing in the back yard when some one approached the gate and started talking to them. Then he tried to climb over the fence. Sampson let out a roar that sounded more like a lion than a dog and hit the fence at a full run.
The guy fell off and ran away.
Next came my Collie, Prince. He was never in good health and lived only 5 years. After Prince, came Wizard and Nikita. Wizard was a Rotty mix and Nikita, aka Nikki was a pure blooded German Shepherd. They both passed in the middle of this new century.s first decade. There is a Tribute and picture of Nikita posted on this site(TR-788122).
The last furry friend I have lost was Chewy, aka Chewbaca, a lab mix. He passed within the last 2 or 3 years. He was really my daughter’s dog, but she was unable to keep him while attending college and Chewy lived out his final years with me. At the end, he was diabetic and mostly blind, but he was happy, able to navigate our yard and wasn’t in pain until he just laid down and went to sleep, never to wake again.
Currently, there are three furry friends in our household. Dakota in my Australian shepherd mix and my wife has Finnegan , a pure Cairn Terrier and Fiona. Fiona is supposed to be Finnegan’s half sister. She is supposedly a Cairn and Pug mix, but looks like neither of the breeds. She is however all Terrier.
That’s my list of memories through 71 years of life. Out of my list, there are 7 dogs buried around my yard, along with a few cats and one snake.
One closing comment. You never replace a pet, you just get a different one. They are all as different as snowflakes.
I still miss them all,
| Jerry McNeill |