On January 4, 2014 our sweet Italian Spinone, Tia, lost her struggle with renal failure just 2 1/2 months shy of her 8th birthday. We will always be thankful to Pat and Debbie for letting this little girl come to WV. She was a Spinone through and through. She was an awesome hunter, a counter surfer, a lap dog, our greeter, and she also caused more mischief than all our other dogs put together. She would howl in sorrow every time I left the farm. She was needy when not actively engaged but very independent when she was doing her thing. She firmly believed that white dogs were meant to be brown, hoses of all kinds were meant to be in segments, and that it was her duty to enable all the animals on the farm to roam free. We progressed through increasingly complicated gate latches, both inside and outside. She burned her candle at both ends and lived a great life on our farm. Here is her life in pictures:
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| Working on stacking for the conformation ring. |
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| Co-owner Debbie showing Tia at her last show in NC. |
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| Co-owner Pat took us under her wing and helped us finish our AKC Junior Hunter title. |
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| Tia very proud with her orange Jr. Hunter ribbons. |
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| She was never without a toy. |
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| She liked to play dress-up. |
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| Did I mention she liked to hunt? |
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| She like mud. |
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| And snow. |
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| And burrs LOVED her! |
Run free my wild child and do all those things you loved and did so well. You were loved and can never be replaced.
Italian Spinoni, a pointing breed, have been part of our farm life for almost 10 years now. Three of these silly and wonderful dogs own us. The Italian Spinone excels as a hunter, companion, entertainer and counter surfer. This week is special because our first Spinone turned 10 this week. Mals-About Moose Tracks came to us in May of 2002 from Kentucky and has been a huge part of our lives. Although I never showed him in conformation classes, we did earn an AKC obedience title (CD). I remember heeling off lead and being a nervous wreck when a fly started buzzing around Moose's head. He snapped at the fly several times but never left my side. Moose is perfect like that. Well almost. I remember getting together for an informal obedience class where we could practice the long "down-stay" with other dogs. I left Moose in position and started walking away when I saw people trying not to laugh. I turned around and Moose was belly-crawling behind me. He never left his down position. I put him back in position, trying really hard not to laugh at his antics and sure enough, he resumed crawling. When I returned to him he rolled over and stuck all four feet in the air. I think it was his way of saying "enough is enough! I've got this already Mom". He was right, he never broke a down-stay in the ring. Such is life with Moose.
