“Some changes look negative on the surface but you will soon realize that space is being created in your life for something new to emerge.”― Eckhart Tolle

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Bailey


This is our friend, Bailey.  Bailey is a Standard Poodle that lives down below us in 'the holler'.  As dogs go, she is awesome.  When the Mighty Quinn was a puppy, as pictured above, the Goatmother often wondered if he would live through his first year without her killing him first.  He is an awesome dog (as dogs go), now, in part thanks to Bailey.  Bailey became 'mother' and patiently attended to the overly boisterous pup.  She tolerated his behavior even to the point that one time the Mighty Quinn, in play, bit her tongue and made it bleed.  Yet she never so much as growled at him.  She was patient.  Much more so than the Goatmother who sported little nip bruises all up and down the backs of her calves from the Mighty Quinn trying to herd her.  That never went over very well, I can tell you.  And then there was the time Bailey and the young Mighty Quinn deigned to herd all us goats into the corner of our lot and keep us there.  Now that was humiliating.  Despite that little episode, and despite the fact that Bailey was, well, a dog, we still pretty much liked her.  I guess as much as any goat likes any stinky old dog.

We are sad to say that Bailey has left us.  She was really old in dog years, and her owners did a fabulous job of helping her to reach well beyond the age most large dogs reach.  That is a testament to how much they loved her.  We will miss her a lot, especially the Mighty Quinn.  She has been a part of our lives as long as we have lived here.

Run with the angels, Bailey, unencumbered by the constraints of time!  You will be greatly missed and forever loved.


16 comments:

Millie said...

I say, she must have been a very special dog for you goats to tolerate her. I'm sorry you've lost your dear friend and neighbor.

Claire MW said...

Sorry to read about Bailey's passing - what a lovely colour she was! Dogs put a lot of living into their short years and it appears that she was no exception.

Marigold said...

Dear Millie
Thank you. We are sorry too. :(

Marigold said...

Dear Claire,
She certainly did that....like the time she came up when we were putting in the fence for we goats and didn't want to go home...much to the consternation of her DogMother. But, hey, she had to oversee to make sure it would be a good fence. She was that kind of a dog. :)

Mrs. Micawber said...

Standard Poodles are such handsome, noble-looking dogs. Bailey must have been a lovely example of her breed. So sorry to hear that Quinn has lost his dear doggy friend.

Marigold said...

Dear Mrs. Micawber,
Bailey was an exceptional example for sure. The Mighty Quinn is very sad indeed. It is like losing his mother. Especially since his real mother wouldn't stay home and got shipped off to Texas. :)

Anonymous said...

The Mighty Quinn has our condolences. We know what it's like to lose one of our non-human friends.

Hindustanka said...

This is a sad news.. but you will definitely keep memories of Bailey and will be remembering her with a smile and gratitude that she once was in your lives... I know how it feels, I lost my cat 3 and a half years ago..

Marigold said...

Dear Goats and Hounds,
Thank you!

Marigold said...

Dear Hindustanka,
We are so sorry for the loss of your cat! We animals are gifts to the humans. Some folks don't 'get it' and don't treat us accordingly, but some special ones do. This puts you in the special category. :)

Snowcatcher said...

What a wonderful life! To have romped so and herded goats (without human help!)... and now to run with the angels...

Difficult thing to lose a beloved pet, even if it's the neighbor's pet.

Marigold said...

Dear SnowCatcher,
To be sure, she had a fabulous life. Even if it didn't include Peanuts.

goatgirl said...

Rest in peace dear Bailey. We had a standard poodle in our life named Bailey. He had a wonderful sense of humor. I doubt he'd been as tolerant of Quinn but he made me laugh. Sorry to hear of your loss of a wonderful neighbor dog.

goatfarmer said...

Why are they wasting all this time inventing iPhones and Kindles and Twitter when somebody could be inventing a way for really good dogs to live longer. Why.

Marigold said...

Dear GoatFarmer,
This is so true. Good dogs like Atticus! Obviously all the research money is going to the wrong places.

Marigold said...

Dear GoatGirl,
Who knew there was more than one Bailey? Must have been a long lost fraternal twin. This is okay so long as the long lost fraternal twin is not an Alpine.