Murphy Manker

Murphy came to us from a shelter when he was 9 years old. He was very active and enjoyed life. He had lost his home when his “parents” had to go to personal care and could not take him along. He was fostered by our friend Nancey and she brought him to us after the adoption was approved. When he got here, he was wearing the harness with the bowtie that Nancey got for him. He love that harness and wore it until it frayed and would not stay on him. The picture above is him wearing his favorite harness.

Murphy loved to run in the fenced yard. He was always on the go. We laughed and said he never slowed down hardly at all until he was 18 years old. At the age of 19 he developed cancer on his back. It still did not slow him down too much. His eye sight was just about gone as was his hearing but he still navigated the house and the yard very well. He was a good eater and drank his water until the very end of his life. We had children in the neighborhood and they loved him and he loved them. They called him Morephy! One little boy would say—can Morephy come out to play? They would watch for John to get his leash on and then he would walk up the street and let him sniff and play a little with the kids. He was a popular guy in the neighborhood.

He slept in bed with us at night until his last few months when he was failing. We were afraid he would fall out of bed so made him a comfy place right beside our bed in a little pop up tent with his favorite bed in there. He slept great at night. He was brave as I would change the dressing on his back. It did not seem to bother him and we wore a little white tee shirt on him to cover the sore area. He loved his little tee shirts and would wag his tail when I put a fresh tee shirt on him once or twice a day.

We have never had a dog live to the age of 20 but Murphy did it. He continued to enjoy his life even though it was a slower pace for him. He loved to eat and his favorite treats were graham crackers and potato rolls. We lost his sister, Autumn, 2 months before Murphy died and he would sniff around like he was trying to find her.

Murphy had a very active life until the last few years. He loved to run and play and bark when people came in and roll on his back and kick his feet in the air. He also liked the snow and would walk around in it and sniff.

Murphy got along with all our dogs. He loved to play with our Maltese named Fannie. She would get tired of playing and would nip at him. No worry, she had no teeth. He thought she was playing and continued to spin around and nip back at her. It was so funny. He will be greatly missed in our home. He had some tough times before he came here but he snapped back to good health and enjoyed his life with us. We are grateful to have had Murphy as a member of our family.

We will always remember you!