Miss Abigail came to us from an acquaintance in Pueblo, CO who had been visiting a friend in Cheyenne, WY who happened to work in the animal shelter there.  Because Abigail had such an unusual background she asked our friend to take the dog with her to Pueblo and try and find a suitable home for “Abbey”.  When Lucille brought her to us at our place of employment she asked us if we would try the little dog for a week and if we didn’t want her to let her know and would pick Abbey up.  I was hesitant because Abigail happened to be a Miniature Poodle which I considered a lady’s dog and  because she  was registered and had all her records of the past 27 months with her, I thought what is wrong with this dog.  But my wife pleaded so I relented and said okay.  We brought her home and after reading the papers I became somewhat disillusioned because Abbey had 5 previous owners (this must be the dog from hell).  She spent one night with us and we became aware of the fact that we would not be her sixth owner – she would own us!  Obviously no one had tried to bond with this dog – thus became a 14 and ½  year odyssey of devotion and joy unparalleled by anything else in our home.  Little did I know at the time that 1 year later I would be told that because of my progressive physical  disability and age It would be best for me to retire.  I had worked all my life and was not ready to quit and for the next few years Abbey became a precious gift from God.  She never left my side and went everywhere with me at home or away.  Abigail lived far beyond the 12 to 14 years predicted for a Miniature Poodle but about a year ago we noticed a change in her as she was getting slow and wanting to sleep more.  We realized that time was becoming limited and tried to brace for the inevitable.  However nothing could have prepared us for the pain we had to endure last Friday when at the age of 16 years and 10 months, we had to say good-bye to our beloved Abigail and watch her gently put to sleep.  She passed as she lived, very quietly and with dignity.  Now we grieve.  As Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy so aptly wrote:  “Dogs are miracles with paws”.

— Terry from Wilber, NE