A Tribute to "Duke"
May he rest in peace
By Sarah Domingos
Winter 2011
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On a bitterly cold winter night I let my elderly dog out onto the deck after dinner. Bashful absolutely refused to go down into the yard. As I nudged her off the deck, a furry streak shot out from between the steps and raced into the yard. I first thought the apparition was a big rat; then I saw that it wore a blue harness and was a Chihuahua instead of a rat. I went up to baby Duke, and he let me pick him right up. I couldn’t believe he hadn’t frozen to death – he was shaking from the icy weather. We were so thankful that Duke found us to bring him in from the cold.
I took Duke inside, wrapped him up in a fleecy blanket, and cuddled him until he was warm. Then my sister and I fed him and gave him water and put him in our Saint Bernard puppy’s playpen. I turned my back, and the next instant he was beside me. I put him back in the pen, and again he shot over it in a flash. Our big fellow Beau had never once escaped from the pen! As we didn’t know your baby’s name was Duke, I called him “Runt” since he was so much smaller than our own dogs. The instant he laid eyes on our biggest dog, Runt decided Beau was the most magnificent love machine in the world. He raced up to him and followed him constantly for the two days he was with us. If he wasn’t sleeping or eating, he was climbing all over Beau. We tried leaving Runt downstairs in a crate when we went to bed, but that didn’t last even an hour. He was a truly pitiful and lonely sounding crybaby with a piercing voice. Needless to say, little Runt spent two nights in the bedroom with me and my furry babies, albeit in a crate. |
It was clear to us that Runt had been a much loved dog, as he was sweet-tempered and well behaved. My sister and I enjoyed two happy days with him before you were reunited with him. We were so glad that you got back together, even if only for a short while.
Duke was a precious little dog, and I hope you will cherish your memories of each and every moment with him. You have our sympathy for your loss, and we will always remember “Runt” fondly. |
Take a look at Dog Tails for more stories about our beloved dogs! To see how Sarah and Buff first became involved in dog rescue read "Commitment to Dog Rescue" under "About Us". You may also want to check out dog rescue resources on our links page.