Our Raven was a rescue puppy in the truest sense of the phrase. She and her siblings, their umbilical cords still attached, were left on the doorstep of a shelter during the night. The shelter workers saved all but one of the eleven puppies. They were moved to a private shelter, and when we went looking for a puppy, there was Raven sitting off in a corner by herself, the quietest little thing there.
She grew into a beautiful dog, so full of love. A fierce protector of her family, if we had to go down over the hill, she would wait at the pasture gate until we returned. The finder of lost possessions, she would bring you things that belonged to you – a glove, a credit card, even an ear of corn out of an open trash can. She loved to ‘help’ you put on your shoes, and paw at your leg while you were eating breakfast. She loved to play Sit, Shake, Lie Down and would do the whole routine whenever she saw a treat in your hand. She was loved by the barncats, especially Muffy who definitely considered Raven, her dog. She was our buddy, our sidekick; she loved to ride in the truck and was always ready for a trip to the feed store. A happy dog, her tail never stopped wagging.
After battling for weeks with prescriptons, diet, new routines and finally hospitalization, we lost our battle against kidney failure and had to put Raven to sleep on Monday. We held her and surrounded her with love until the very end. She was our constant companion and is deeply missed.