Farewell, Tip

With a dog you can move a herd of cattle. Or as a boy you can lose an afternoon along Contraband Bayou looking for pirate treasure with only the company of your dog. As companions and helpmates in our lives dogs are so intertwined as to often seem yet another appendage. Or, as is often said, they seem a member of the family; albeit a member who sleeps rough outside in most weather.tip

That appendage was severed this week when we had Tip put down. She was fifteen, a loyal companion and friend. Her life span covered the purchase of the farm in 1999 to this past week. She was my loyal companion by her choice and insistence, sharing every walk I’ve ever taken on this farm. If you enter her name in the search box on this blog she showed up frequently in these pages. A few of my favorite entries:  Dog Days of Summer, Tip: an aging stockdog, Two Dog Tales. But her name showed up casually in dozens of entries as befits a dog so central to our lives.

produce 002I doubt I’ll leave the porch again without pausing and waiting for her to rise up and join me.

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16 thoughts on “Farewell, Tip

  1. My condolences. You’ve done her proud with such a nice eulogy.

    What was the name of the dog in the Contraband Bayou adventure? While not in a bayou, I took a long afternoon stroll in our woods with Spook when we first moved out to the farm. Caught all sorts of heck for that one… hadn’t told anyone we were going out for the adventure (I was about 7). Neighbors called in to assist in the search – not one of my brighter moments. But Spook was cool – labs just have a way of being cool.

    • Thanks, Clem. Funny how a boy and a dog can pass such an innocent afternoon, yet leave chaos in their wake, eh? That recollection from my youth would have included a couple of overlapping dogs, Prince and Snow. Both were good mongrel types of no specific inheritance.

  2. Losing a beloved pet is always hard, but Tip must have been extra special — a great companion and a big part of a changing-time in your life. You will be missing her for a long time. So sorry for that loss.

  3. Pingback: Becky: In praise of a working farm dog | The South Roane Agrarian

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