me re: my life

All Dogs Go to Heaven

My dog Raleigh was euthanized today. It's never easy to say goodbye particularly to such a great dog.

Westmont's Raleigh of Darien (his official AKC title) was named after the city in North Carolina, loved to roll around in the grass, and despite his breed didn't learn to swim until he was seven years old. As a puppy he loved his squeaky hamburger toy and tried to help with the New York Times in the morning. He swallowed socks, stockings, napkins and anything else he could get his mouth on.



As an adult, Raleigh was very attached to my mom, but still enjoyed his frequent sojourns at "camp." He often slept on the couch when we were out of the house and he was a famous redecorator. "Raleigh's been redecorating again," we'd say when we arrived home to a bedroom pillow in the foyer and a couch pillow in the bedroom. When he wanted attention, he would pick up a shoe and carry it around gently in his mouth making a quiet grrr noise. I think he secretly loved that the chase often ended in belly rubs. It was sometimes difficult to find both shoes of a pair in the mornings. Aside from his wonderfully soft ears and happy smile, my favorite feature of his was the fur on his paws that sprouted out between his toes.



Raleigh only lived to the age of eight, but they were eight good years and he seemed like a happy dog right up until the end. Two weeks ago, we shared some good moments as he flopped down next to me in the cool moist grass of my brother's backyard and blissfully rolled around. (sigh...) Salty tears. Bye Raleigh.

posted by Anne @ 9:02 PM