Thursday, April 18, 2013

Holly


My husband has a favorite saying in answer to whatever is plaguing me at any given moment.  "Oh well, it's always something".  Sometimes it's funny and sometimes not.  Yesterday was one of those days when it was not.  We received a call from a neighbor early yesterday morning, telling us that there was a dog on the side of the road that looked like it could be one of our Pyrenees.  It was our weird, sweet Holly.  The past few years she's gotten progressively more fearful of storms and it seemed as though nothing we tried seemed to calm or comfort her.  Usually, she would run off and hide and show up the next day, looking as though she had been through hell.  Monday night we had one of the most dramatic storms I can remember in a long time. So much thunder, lightning and heavy rain and it went on forever.  Holly had obviously started running and just kept going because she was 1 1/2 miles from home.  At some point, she must have run out into the road and been hit.  Holly had been here five years and I wrote about her arrival here.  We don't know what her life experiences were before she arrived here.  She had a quirky personality and clearly preferred her sheep to hanging out with humans (which is exactly how it should be for a dog who's been bred to protect livestock).  She's been a wonderful guardian for our animals - always sweet and kind with the ewes and lambs, never playing rough or chasing them.  We are going to miss her so very much.  We still have Aslan and are most likely going to need to start a new puppy soon, though it's difficult to even think about that at the moment.  It's all part of that ever-present cycle of life and death here on the farm.


19 comments:

  1. Oh, I am so very sorry. I know that there are many deaths on farms as we used to have one, but it still can be heartbreaking. I know you will miss her so much. Take care.

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  2. i am really sorry to hear this Dianne. Holly was a great dog. this is so sad.

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  3. Oh Dianne, how traumatic for her and you. I'm so sorry.

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  4. So sorry, It is such a heart breaking time when we lose one of our dear animal friends. We used to have a dog (that we had from a pup) that would crawl into the the smallest places in our garage when it stormed.....The dog we have now couldn't care less when it storms..... Time will heal~~~~

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  5. Sorry to hear about your loss. Holly sounds like such a wonderful creature.

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  6. I am terribly sorry. Losing a pet is awfully painful. You have my heartfelt sympathy.
    Kim

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  7. Wow! I so hate to hear that! It's good to know that you gave her a very good 5 yrs.

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  8. {{{{{hugs}}}}. I can not imagine the loss of a wonderful guardian dog.

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  9. Ohhh - so sorry to hear about Holly. Hate it when it's an accident and shouldn't have happened!! Thoughts and prayers!

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  10. Poor, sad Holly. How horrible the last moments of her life was terror. So, so sad. Pyrs are such wonderful dogs.

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  11. Hi Dianne - Oh I am so sorry to hear this. We had a Border Collie who was terrified of thunderstorms. She would run for miles. I was always so worried when I heard thunder rumbling in. But I could put her in the house. You can't with a Guard Dog. It seems their lives are so dedicated and so short.
    Hugs to you and your flock. So sorry.
    Kristin

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  12. So sorry for Holly, and sorry for your loss. Almost unbearable.
    Marcy

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  13. So very sorry about Holly.....she was beautiful.

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  14. So very sorry for the tragic loss of Holly. As one of God's creatures, she remains part of His creation--an apt quote: "Be thou comforted, Little Dog. Thou, too, in Resurrection, shall have a little golden tail." Martin Luther

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    1. Oh, I LOVE that quote!!! Thank-you for sharing it; I hadn't read that one before.

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  15. So very sorry about Holly, Diane. She couldn't have had a better life than with you and your sheep.

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  16. So sorry to hear this. My heart goes out to you.

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