Skye
posted by Chris at 22:50
This is a happy/sad post.
A week or so ago we got a really nice e-mail from Kilby McBean who lives in Lake Cowichan, BC - take a look at the town's website, particularly the sceic views page, then tell me you're not jealous.
Kilby and her husband to much the same as we do here at The Beastly Beasts; fostering and rehoming, and they have got a fabulous name - The Mongrel Hordes.
Kilby got in touch because - well, in her own words:
Our Skye, a 10-year old collie/deerhound cross is ill right now. I was surfing for info on holistic remedies, stories of dogs who have lived through similar crises, hope--anything to keep my mind off things until the test results are in. Imagine my delight--what a mood lifter-- to find a pic of your beloved Phelan--the very masculine spitting image of our Skye. I would love to send you a photo if I may have an e-mail address to attach it to. Thanks for making my day, and making each day for your lovely pack.
Flattery gets anyone pretty much anywhere round here, so of course we wrote back. Then Kilby wrote back, and she was not kidding; Skye is the dead spit of Phelan. Here's the proof
Beeeoootiful Skye
Phelan - The Original Beastly Beast
Kilby also told us more about Skye. Again her words are best:
"Skye came to us at under a year and had been in a series of shelters as she had a litter, weaned them, and had them taken away--all behind bars. We suspect she was overvaccinated as she got shunted around. Anyway, we tried to make up for that by never vaccinating again and getting her on BARF and natural health care right away. She thrived. She was our only dog for almost a year and was the most grateful dog I'd ever met.
She is ball-obsessed--first tennis balls, now lacrosse balls (which also fit perfectly into ChuckIts). Rob used this obsession to train her as the first gooseherder in the Vancouver region--clearing soccer fields and golf courses of Canada geese (who are just lovely, but very messy). She would streak into a resting flock of geese and scatter them in all directions, never harming a feather, just retrieving her ball. This annoyed the geese enough to make them think twice about frequenting those places. Later she and Rob trained in RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) tracking with drive and she was a natural. I think Rob had Search and Rescue aspirations for her, but that was not to be, because we got involved in rehabbing and training shelter dogs and in no time, Skye had to share our time and home with an ever-changing pack of fosters and permanent residents--dozens of whom we found nice homes for. The leftovers who were more challenging are still with us and are known as, yup, the Mongrel Hordes. Skye became the Beta dog, the lieutenant, the enforcer to our pack leader Calum."
This dog trained with the RCMP, was the first gooseherder in the Vancouver region, and can cook. Don't believe me?
Skye at the Stove
I said at the start this is a happy/sad post; happy because we brightened someones day, we found a Phelan look-a-like, and hopefully have new friends in Canada who will keep in touch.
Sad because:
"Skye, at ten, has been diagnosed with an inoperable cancer which is around her heart and spreading to her lungs. She is all filled up with fluid, poor thing, so she's on diuretics and a heart pill to ease the stress."
"We may only have Skye another few weeks and they tell us she will not be in pain, but will eventually find it hard to breathe, so we will know well when to let her go. We hope to make her last days joyful and serene."
Skye has obviously had a great life, full of love and enjoyment. Everyone here at The Beastly Beasts wishes Skye comfort and peace in her last days.
And when she does go to the bridge, maybe she'll find Phelan on the other side.
A week or so ago we got a really nice e-mail from Kilby McBean who lives in Lake Cowichan, BC - take a look at the town's website, particularly the sceic views page, then tell me you're not jealous.
Kilby and her husband to much the same as we do here at The Beastly Beasts; fostering and rehoming, and they have got a fabulous name - The Mongrel Hordes.
Kilby got in touch because - well, in her own words:
Our Skye, a 10-year old collie/deerhound cross is ill right now. I was surfing for info on holistic remedies, stories of dogs who have lived through similar crises, hope--anything to keep my mind off things until the test results are in. Imagine my delight--what a mood lifter-- to find a pic of your beloved Phelan--the very masculine spitting image of our Skye. I would love to send you a photo if I may have an e-mail address to attach it to. Thanks for making my day, and making each day for your lovely pack.
Flattery gets anyone pretty much anywhere round here, so of course we wrote back. Then Kilby wrote back, and she was not kidding; Skye is the dead spit of Phelan. Here's the proof
Beeeoootiful Skye
Phelan - The Original Beastly Beast
Kilby also told us more about Skye. Again her words are best:
"Skye came to us at under a year and had been in a series of shelters as she had a litter, weaned them, and had them taken away--all behind bars. We suspect she was overvaccinated as she got shunted around. Anyway, we tried to make up for that by never vaccinating again and getting her on BARF and natural health care right away. She thrived. She was our only dog for almost a year and was the most grateful dog I'd ever met.
She is ball-obsessed--first tennis balls, now lacrosse balls (which also fit perfectly into ChuckIts). Rob used this obsession to train her as the first gooseherder in the Vancouver region--clearing soccer fields and golf courses of Canada geese (who are just lovely, but very messy). She would streak into a resting flock of geese and scatter them in all directions, never harming a feather, just retrieving her ball. This annoyed the geese enough to make them think twice about frequenting those places. Later she and Rob trained in RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) tracking with drive and she was a natural. I think Rob had Search and Rescue aspirations for her, but that was not to be, because we got involved in rehabbing and training shelter dogs and in no time, Skye had to share our time and home with an ever-changing pack of fosters and permanent residents--dozens of whom we found nice homes for. The leftovers who were more challenging are still with us and are known as, yup, the Mongrel Hordes. Skye became the Beta dog, the lieutenant, the enforcer to our pack leader Calum."
This dog trained with the RCMP, was the first gooseherder in the Vancouver region, and can cook. Don't believe me?
Skye at the Stove
I said at the start this is a happy/sad post; happy because we brightened someones day, we found a Phelan look-a-like, and hopefully have new friends in Canada who will keep in touch.
Sad because:
"Skye, at ten, has been diagnosed with an inoperable cancer which is around her heart and spreading to her lungs. She is all filled up with fluid, poor thing, so she's on diuretics and a heart pill to ease the stress."
"We may only have Skye another few weeks and they tell us she will not be in pain, but will eventually find it hard to breathe, so we will know well when to let her go. We hope to make her last days joyful and serene."
Skye has obviously had a great life, full of love and enjoyment. Everyone here at The Beastly Beasts wishes Skye comfort and peace in her last days.
And when she does go to the bridge, maybe she'll find Phelan on the other side.
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