Letting go of the past....

I rather like turning up an old vaccination certificate when I'm looking for something else. It usually revives some happy memories. I do have trouble with the dogs though. Must be at least 9 years since they both died and I still miss them terribly. That's Border Collies for you!

Tegan I have a dangly photo frame thingy which is made up of interlocking hearts. It displays photos of my dogs, horse, ponies and cats going back to when I was a child.

I have kept winning rosettes and a few newspaper clippings but other than that I've thrown everything away.

It's just stuff. Memories are more important

Tegan if you have to ask, then the answer is probably 'not yet'. Find a nice box, put everything in there and put it away. You'll know when or if you're ready next time you open it up.

I have a lovely photograph in my lingerie drawer of my husband in his prime with our beautiful golden retriever Toby- can't help a tear or two when I come across it as I know we will never have another dog now.

Oh bum started again!

Julian Clary was talking about his elderly ailing dog in Woman's Weekly. I can't remember who he was quoting but the gist was that it was a compassionate God who made their lives so short, because if we suffer so much when we've only known them for 12 or 13 years how much worse would it be it they lived twice as long? Still think I'd go for twice as long though.

Was he talking about Valerie the wonder dog?

...no, googled it; it was Fanny the wonder dog. Valerie was just Valerie....

Fanny must have gone a longtime ago, I remember watching her with my mother. She was a dear little dog.

DD lost her lab this time last year and announced that she WOULD NEVER EVER have another. Guess what along has come 2! A friend has emigrated and so DD has taken on her dogs. But a more odd pair I have yet to see - one is like a small pony and is a labradoodle/irish wolfhound mix, the other is a shi tzui (can't spell that). But what we have all been amazed at is the eldest GS change, he was obviously mourning the loss of his beloved lab for the whole year and now is absolutely joyous and back to his old self. It is lovely to see.

Labradoodles can be enormous anyway but throw in irish wolfhound as well ; I can imagine what it's like though and I reckon it's gorgeous. I've just been utubing Malamutes because the chap at the garage where I take my car has them. He says that when a fire engine or an ice cream van goes past they try to imitate the sound. I'm so happy for your GS!

I lost a darling little dog in May. I soon found myself looking on Many Tears web site and, 7 weeks ago, Alice came home. I gave her my lost dog's bed and brush, collar and lead, my lap and my love.

Oh Tegan, I read your post and looked at my 14 year old cross terriers and tried to imagine life without them being around( they outlasted the husband ) and then thought about my 12 year old horse.
I hate the thought that in a few years time my beloved duo will be gone and I will have to give up my horse too .At 63 I am quite fit and ride 3/4 times a week accepting the aches and pains as the cost I have to pay and I have a role model in Trevor at our farm he's 72 and rides his arab every other day.
I have no family near and my animals are a huge part of my life.....I can imagine how you felt remembering yours.......but aren't we the lucky ones sharing our lives with them

I do envy you being able to ride; I never could [I fall off ].I just liked being with horses. Not only that but it was something that my daughter and I shared [ie she did all the riding and I did all the work and paid the bills ] but it was a magical time. She always said that I only got her a pony anyway because I'd always wanted one and she was, of course right! I'm going through a lot of my daughters school and uni work at the moment and she's telling me what to keep and what to burn; tonight we found a draft of a very stroppy letter I sent to her school one day. I'm very impressed with what I wrote. I've also found an old horse of the year show programme and an essay she wrote about the day we went to see Desert Orchid. Give your horse a hug and a polo from me.