Winston's Photos

A Little Bit About Winston

Breed: English Setter

Gender: Male

Favorite Treat: Tortilla Chips

Best Trick: Barking at the doorbell

Favorite Game: Barking at the mailman

Favorite Pastime: Following Ralph anywhere

Special Skill: His Happy Dance

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Ch. Willglen's Devonshire Dandy
Winston

Born: November 10, 1995 Redwood City, CA 3:00 AM
Died: November 14, 2009 New York, NY 10:40 AM

Lived in San Francisco, CA February 24, 1996 – December 24, 2007
Lived in New York, NY – December 25, 2007 – November 14, 2009

He was the runt of his litter, the 11th puppy born that night. He was born in Redwood City, CA at the home of Tom and Roberta Williams. He was the most loving and caring companion anyone could ask for. In the beginning, he ate anything in sight -- rubber bands, tennis balls, Tupperware, wallboard, molding. He barked so loud that we had to get him debarked in response to complaints from the neighbor. He needed two surgeries his first two years just to remove things he had eaten from his stomach. He almost needed a third, but the river stones he had eaten finally passed naturally.

Winston's AKC registered name was Ch. Willglen's Devonshire Dandy. The "Ch." was added after he became a champion. Willglen is the name of Tom and Roberta Williams' kennel, and Devonshire because he looked like devonshire cream, and Dandy because he knew he was the most handsome of the lot. His parents (Ch. Willglen's Court Jester and Ch. Willglenn Pudin's Gran Finale) were champions, so he was expected to become a champion as well. As undisciplined as he was in his early day-to-day early life, he was totally disciplined in the ring. It must have been bred into him. To see him compete was to see a completely different dog -- a thing of beauty -- poised, controlled, proud. He finished, and he was a champion.

He bonded instantly and completely with Ralph. That's not to say that he didn't love all those others who were in his life -- but the bond with Ralph was different. He would follow Ralph anywhere, and in the NYC apartment -- which is only 800 square feet -- that was something. In the last few weeks when he was unable to move a lot, he followed him with his eyes. But even this morning, when Ralph went to take a shower, Winston got up and walked to sit outside the bathroom.

He loved all those who lived with him over the years -- cousin Eric, brother Gerry, Bobbie and Taylor, Ken, Tim, DB. And he had a special bond with all the children who came in and out of his life -- Taylor Birdsong, Jeff's niece Stormi Rose Morris, Gracie Ramos.

His SF life revolved around the mailman, somehow hearing the mail truck when it was half a mile away, and racing down the front steps and barking ferociously the minute the mail was delivered. When one of us would come home after a trip, he would race down the hall, race back into the great room, jump on the couch, twirl around in a circle, and just experience pure joy to see us.

When Ralph moved to NYC in March, 2003, he and Winston were separated for 4 1/2 years. They still saw each other several times a year in either SF or NYC, and it was always amazing to see that that bond was unbroken -- regardless of how long it had been.

He moved to NYC on Christmas Day 2007, and quickly settled into NYC life. He loved going to NJ to see Jeff's brother's family and Jeff's parents. At Joe and Muriel's, he would chase squirrels all afternoon -- running in and out of the house every 10 minutes. At Dave's, he taught Pippin the bird how to bark. He loved taking walks with Stormi Rose.

That first summer, he was up and down the spiral staircase to the roof every time Ralph would go up there. His favorite place to sleep during the day was on top of our bed -- which he wouldn't jump up to until after we had left the apartment. When we came back, he would race to the door to greet us, and do his NYC version of the happy dance -- which was always difficult because the floors were more slippery and there wasn't near enough space.

He was the star of the 2008 Henne Family reunion, where he would lay down in the middle of 100 people at a moment's notice and just completely go to sleep for 30 minutes at a time. He also was a hit at Johnnie and Patty Puckhaber's annual backyard picnic that summer.

His last year he really slowed down as his mobility became more and more impaired. This summer he was only able to climb up the stairs to the roof twice, but we carried him up there often. He was still somehow able to get down those stairs -- even as recently as the Sunday before he died.

Walks this summer were very short. He was always a San Francisco dog at heart, and the heat and humidity were not his thing. Once the temperature dropped this Fall, he was able to take many walks. Even as his overall mobility continued to diminish, he was able to take walks to the dog park along the Hudson River several times a week. We went there the night before he died. And it took a long time to get there and back, but we got there.

In the days before he died, he got to eat many of his favorite things -- steak, donuts, pizza, vanilla ice cream, a bagel.

Winston died peacefully on a rainy Saturday morning in NYC with Ralph and Jeff by his side. This morning we went out for one last walk at 9 AM. It had been a rainy morning but the skies cleared for a few minutes. We walked to the Dunkin Donuts on 10th and 43rd and he had two donuts. We came home, and he fell asleep in Ralph's arms. The vet came 5 minutes later, and it was all very peaceful. He looked at us until he couldn't look any more, with Bruce Springsteen's "Lonesome Day" playing in the background.

There is a giant hole in our hearts which will take forever to heal, but we'll get there. Thanks to everyone for all your love and support over the past few weeks, and in the weeks to come.

For more pictures, please visit the following link:

http://public.fotki.com/dhenne23/winston/

Updated 11-21-2009



 

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