Tillie is in Doggy Heaven.

Tillie

Age 13, August 01, 1996 - March 10, 2010

You were the sunshine of my life and you gave me so much joy. I will love you and miss you always.

Nickname: Tillikins, Huffabuff, Red-dog, Wee Tillie Willikin

Tillie was rescued from an abandoned home by my mother in 1996 when she was just a few months old. She grew from a gawky Golden Retriever/Lab/Shepherd mix pup into a splendid golden girl with a heart the size of the Ritz. Tillie was the welcome wagon for my children whenever we visited and delighted them for years with her gaiety and affection. When my mother died of a heart attack in her pool in 2001, Tillie stood by her body for 10 hours, barking until she was hoarse to summon help. My brother took over her care for the next few years, until I brought her to my home in 2004. Tillie was a member of our family for 13 1/2 wonderful years.

She loved to lie in the sunshine, which she followed across the yard to her favorite spots. Her thick butterscotch fur glowed like gold in the sun. She had a radiant smile and expressive deep chocolate eyes as soft as a deer's. She welcomed everyone - children, cats, and every dog she ever met. Whenever my daughter or I came home, she greeted us with the Tillie dance (aka prance-a-dance) - a rollicking, prancing dance of joy that she did in circles around the room, preferably with a partner.

If we were near, she was happy. Every now and then she would come by to say hi and give me a lick - a kiss to remind me that she loved me. She adored being brushed, petted and having her belly and backside rubbed. All three of the cats loved her, even the surly old one, and they would sidle up to her to give her nose kisses.

She loved walks, and had the best nose I've ever seen, always discovering information the other dogs had missed. She loved to tree possums and did it often, even well into her 13th year. She slept by my bed or by my brother's, and was never far away.

Today, for the first time, she is. Tillie passed from cancer early this morning. Her last thought was to look for me to say goodbye one final time. I buried her in the yard under a tree, far enough out that there will always be sunshine on the grass above her head.

It will be hard to go on without Tillikins, but I am very grateful to have had the privilege of sharing my life with her for so many wonderful years. I hope that she's now in a place of eternal peace, joy, and sunshine, and back in my mother's arms forever.

Rest In Peace, Tillie Willikins