Farewell beautiful Angel (Ruawhata Road)

By Fatima |

Friday, June 15, 2012

One of our favourite pictures of Angel

A very special post just in from Nan and Susan from Hamilton:

We lost our beautiful Angel (Ruawhata Road) on Saturday the 9^th of June. She was nearly 13 and a half years old, and we had the privilege of sharing the last year and a half of her life with her. The moment Angel came in to our lives, we wondered how we ever lived without her. She was a bit nervous, which is very understandable considering the sudden death of her trainer who she had lived all her life with, but it didn’t take her long to figure out that we had a lot of love to give.

 It took the cats a few days to decide she was okay, but our griffon Molly liked her from the start. When Molly went blind about three months after Angel arrived, Angel somehow figured out that Molly couldn’t see, so every time Angel got up to move around, she would look for Molly, and often stop and stand still so Molly could wander underneath her! 

We took Angel everywhere, and she charmed everyone she met. She was eagerly awaited every month at the local market, and well known amongst all our friends. When Molly passed last August, Angel really came in to her own – it was probably the first time in her life she was the only dog in the house, and it turned her into a bouncy puppy. When either one of us came home and Angel heard the garage door, she was waiting for us to say “Is that my Angel?” and once we said it, she would bound over for a cuddle. 

She captured the heart of my 81 year old mother who came to visit from the states- after a week with Angel, Mom was busy buying GAP Christmas cards to send to all her friends, and a calendar to “take home a greyhound of my own,” in Florida. Its not surprising really, because she had the knack of making everyone she met fall in love with her. Even the vet said “Greyhounds are one of the best breeds of dogs and Angel is one of the best greyhounds I have ever met.” She was a charmer.

These two pictures (with Susan) are pretty much good-bye shots as it was just before her final trip to the vet on that sad Saturday:

Some people might hesitate getting a greyhound who is almost 12 years old, but I can tell you, as hard as goodbye is, it is worth it. I would swear she was extra grateful to have a warm loving home to rest her old bones and enjoy her last years- and she managed to show us that love every day. She was a one in a million hound, and will be very sorely missed.