I thought I’d bring another sweet soul to the pages of Earth to Holly, as Lucy has kindly agreed to share her space with a precious being whom she never met.
This is our golden retriever, Emma, who passed away four years ago, June 8. Adopted from Prince William County animal control in Manassas, Virginia, on February 19, 1994, which was unfortunately not a no-kill shelter, she was scheduled to be put down the following day as she had gone unclaimed for several weeks. I would love to think that we saved her life, but actually, a girl who came into the shelter a few minutes after us had also come to see her. She surely would’ve taken her had it not been for us.
Emma was a stray, so we knew nothing of her past, but our veterinarian guessed that she was probably around four years old. While some of her behavior hinted at unkind treatment in the past—you could feel the bb in her back where someone had shot her—her indoor manners were excellent. She was never interested in playing with toys, other dogs or the water, so we assumed that she had never been taught to play or socialized when she was young. But she was so sweet and very smart and cunning, much like Lucy. And she had an excellent nose. We would quietly unwrap a piece of chocolate and before we knew it, there she was! Of course, she couldn’t have chocolate, but she never gave up. And she would counter-surf…a stick of butter…a loaf of french bread. Once she got hold of a large Ghirardelli chocolate bar and ate the whole thing, very carefully extracting the chocolate and leaving the wrapper in near perfect condition. She did the same with a whole sleeve of Girl Scout Thin Mints. And then there was the large canister of fish food flakes. We were lucky that she never suffered any consquences from her choice of cuisine.
And she favored W, something that was hard to accept as well as forget, as insensitive ones never failed to dwell on that fact. I know Em’s feelings were instinctual and not personal, though (I think?). For whatever reason, she just felt more comfortable and safe with him, and it was obvious that she needed that.
In this photo, taken by W in the summer of 2001 on Virginia’s Northern Neck, Em watches as one of the local watermen checks his crab pots.
Grace
T
8noodles
Anita
justin
YogaforCynics
Oh, Golden Retrievers are such wonderful creatures…I still miss Duncan, along with our Welsh Corgi, Mittens, one of my only friends during the darkest years of adolescence….
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Such a sweet tribute to Emma. She sounds like she was a wonderful dog!
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It’s a great shot of a great doggie. I love looking at her back and seeing what she is seeing. Happy to read about Emma and I think it’s important to pay tribute to beloved animals who have passed. I intend to do that for a few of mine later.
Great weekend to you. :)
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Seeing photos like this reminds me of why we often project human qualities onto animals. I feel I could make up a whole story about Emma’s day, just based on this one photo.
Its kind of like when I see a dog confidently ‘self-walking’ themselves down the street. Clearly, they’re on a mission or an adventure and they have secrets we’ll never know about. Golden retrievers are very sweet pups!
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Twitter: earthtoholly
Hi drjay…I remember your mentioning of Duncan here and in your posts, and each time it reminds me of a friend of Lucy’s who moved to Seattle last year. His name is Duncan and he is an Australian Shepherd/Husky mix and everyone at the park thought Lucy looked so much like him…we didn’t really see it until now. Here’s a link to some Duncan pics…he is a real cutie…we miss him. http://arjunsubramanian.smugmug.com/
I really wish dogs would live as long as their people…it’s just too hard losing them. I’ve heard that Corgi’s are very loyal companions, but what dogs aren’t, right? And of course, the reputation of the Golden Retriever can’t be beat. There are no bad dogs, only bad owners. I know Duncan and Mittens had an excellent life with you, you incurable, yoga-practicin’ dog-lover!
Twitter: earthtoholly
Thank you BeadedTail and yes, she was a sweetheart. I only wish she could’ve enjoyed the usual doggie things. I feel that she really missed out in that respect.
Twitter: earthtoholly
Hi Lydia and thanks,
As time goes on I find that I forget some of the little things about her, and then I start to get Em’s goings-ons mixed up with Lucy’s. They are alike in many ways, so I sometimes see them as one and the same.
I look forward to your doggie posts…although usually sad, it’s always nice to read about a beloved animal.
You have a great weekend, too!
Twitter: earthtoholly
Hi Svasti,
Yeah, Emma would spend her time sleeping on the dock or barking at passing boaters. And I agree that they definitely have their own agendas. They’ve got schedules to keep, so stay out of the way, hoo-mans!
By the way, while Emma loved it on the dock, Lucy doesn’t like it, is always itching to get back home. Spoiled girl…
I agree that animals live for way too short a time. I’ve thought about doing a post about all the animals that have been a part of my life, or maybe just highlighting a few (Frank, Augie, Loudon) — but that wouldn’t be fair to the others. I love the detail of Emma extracting the chocolate bar, though I imagine you were worried about her after finding that!
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Twitter: earthtoholly
Hi Jennifer,
One of the nice things about writing about Emma now, is that it brings back memories of little things about her that I had almost forgotten. The chocolate bar incident wasn’t one though…you’re right…we were so worried about that!
Twitter: craftybird
Emma was a really lucky dog. Perhaps the girl who came for her after you would have adopted her, but would Emma have had a happier life? I very much doubt it. Anyone can see how much love and devotion you pour into your animal friends, the kindness and consideration which is sadly so rare. Taking on an animal companion who has been poorly treated, when you don’t know their history can be daunting. Our lovely old cat (called just “cat” because she was wild to the end of her days) had obviously been treated horrifically when she turned up in our back garden, a starved scrap. She never learned to play or hunt, so just like Emma I guess she was never socialised. You need rare patience with an animal like that, and you have it. Thanks for telling us about Emma, I love the story of her food pinchin’ ways! I’ve never had a dog but I’m very fond, and I love reading about yours.
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Twitter: craftybird
BTW it’s completely off topic I know but Earth to Holly is loading reeeeealy slowly for me. It could be a problem at my end but if it is, it’s only affecting your blog. Just thought I’d let you know in case it’s something on your end.
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Twitter: earthtoholly
Hi Bird and thanks so much for the kind words. Glad that you like reading about the four-legged ones, as I never tire of talking about them or showing them off. While my rantings are sometimes downers, anything reported on the animals could be nothing less than uplifting. And both would love every one of their readers—they love/loved people and attention.
Oh your poor Cat. She was lucky that you, and not some mean-spirited ones, found her. The stories of what some do to puppies and kittens, purely for their own sick entertainment, are sickening. It is obvious from your writing that you also are a huge animal lover and do all you can to encourage their care. Here’s to the animals—hooray! :o)
And thank you for the heads up on the loading…I haven’t noticed a problem on this end, but that’s not to say all is well. Please give me a shout if the problems persist…
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