24/10/2023
Yesterday, I said goodbye to Booker. He had not been feeling well for quite a while, and although he visited many vets, tried lots of different things, and he'd seem to get better for a little while, he went further downhill about a month ago than he had in the past. We tried more things, and he put on such a brave and happy face for me, trying to hide his pain, but I couldn't see him struggle anymore. It was heartbreaking, he was far too young.
Booker was ALWAYS happy, and always wanted to please. He loved laying on his dog bed, which has survived over 10 years (the ONLY one to do so), but started out laying on his mom, on the dog bed. It was really a full circle watching Wade lay on top of him, on the dog bed, this last week.
While I've had many Dual Champions, he was my first Bred By DC. He suffered a spiral break to his leg at just under 2, and still managed to finish his show championship and field championship after that. He always had his mouth hanging wide open, barked like a gorilla, and made everyone smile. He was a small guy, ~32 pounds at his most, and loved to jump up and cuddle. He spent a lot of time with Ben Garcia, of Hideaway KennelsHideaway Kennels, and sired a lot of puppies, mostly due to his biddability, extreme birdiness, style, and sweet disposition. He was campaigned on the field trial circuit by Jessica Carlson and Ed Tillson Tequila Kennels, did a lot of winning/placing (and Jessica did get some show points on him also), and finished his DC in 2017, 4 months before he turned 4 years old.
I cannot begin to list the people he's touched, either through his own self, or through his puppies, but I know he will live on through the memories and his offspring. I have so many photos but just shared a few here. He (and his folded show side ear) were pretty photogenic
