Thursday, April 03, 2008

Thursday Challenge: Pets -

"Taffy"
digitally manipulated photograph by Mick Mather
Pets is this week's theme at Thursday Challenge so I went rummaging through the stacks looking for some of the beautiful animals I had while growing up. Taffy, named for his creamy, copper color was a Cocker Spaniel with one of the most even tempered personalities I can recall of any dog that my maternal grandmother picked for us from a particularly large litter. He was one of her best stud dogs and, for my father, the absolute best bird dog you've ever seen in the field. I recall many an enjoyable weekend walking through boggy woods in waist hight cattail and foxtail with dad and that dog. You could see the waving stalks as Taffy worked right to left and back again, ever outward, flushing out game cocks and hens. Every once in a while you'd see this dog jump straight up in the air, spinning to get his bearings and to assess the direction my father was walking in. Sadly, he had epilepsy and didn't last more than a decade or so, but while we had him, what a sweet, loving pet he was.

Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

9 Comments:

Blogger SusuPetal said...

He looks honey sweet and soft.

10:23 PM  
Blogger hpy said...

You could have participated in the Finnish photo theme with this one - a GHOST from the past. A very nice one.

12:24 AM  
Blogger Mick said...

susupetal:
He most certainly was both of those things. :)

hpy:
Thanks, Hélène. I've had to drop one of my other Photo Theme sites, Moody Monday, as I was getting too restricted with half the week's effort going to them. The sweet fellow is a ghost from past in many ways, though. :)

5:09 AM  
Blogger Elegia said...

I can see it. Many times!

7:12 AM  
Blogger Mick said...

elegia:
Thanks so much ... he was a real gentleman, that dog.

8:13 AM  
Blogger Lucky Dip Lisa said...

This is moving. I think this illustrates the fact that Taffy has moved on quite well and that he was loved and happy. It's a lovely piece.

11:32 PM  
Blogger Mick said...

lisa sarsfield:
Thanks so much, he was a great dog. One extra bit that didn't get into my little story is that we also took one of his sired pups. This dog, a female runt-of-the-litter named Penny, was sweeter than he if you can believe it. The day we brought her home, maybe 5 or 6 weeks old, she trotted up to her father who was sleeping in his doggy bed, woofed him out of it and moved right in, for life!

4:20 AM  
Blogger Lucky Dip Lisa said...

Awwwww. I love Penny already!

3:20 AM  
Blogger Mick said...

lisa sarsfield:
LOL, I knew that you would. Taffy was a runner if you left the gate open but, Penny? She was the only dog I know of that would yip - yip - yip! to get back INSIDE the fence. :)

7:42 AM  

Post a Comment

<< Home