[Perhaps only slightly off-topic -- many of us know Allis-Chompers
quite well by now! I'm also saddened by this news. BIG]

Dear Ferret Folks-

I was not certain if this would be too off-topic for the FML, but then
again I have mentioned my dog, the Noble Allis-Chompers many times over
the years. She of the soft black bat ears, she of the velvety green
armchair.

Last night the vet and an assistant came to our house and sent her on
to what I hope are further adventures. I hope to meet her again one
day, young and strong again, not increasingly crippled by arthritis
and weary. She gave me and my hubby thirteen and a half years of
unquestioning loyalty and excellent company. She taught us many things.
If she had lived to next summer, she would have been fifteen.

It's only been a short while, but I feel her absence keenly. Nobody to
lick the dinner plates clean. I put my hand down absentmindedly and no
soft, silky black head appears, as if by magic. The dog bed by the
wood-stove is empty.

Godspeed, my girl. Surely you are waking up to find yourself in the
sweetly-smelling long grass that whips the underside of your belly and
your flanks as you run, run, run once more. Legs long and sound, back
strong. Hold your black nose to the earth and smell the richness and
promise of the day. Roll in the grass and get up again, quick as a
wink. And run, run, run...

Alexandra in MA

[Posted in FML 6900]