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The best dog in the whole, wide world!

A letter from my dad to my daughter

I know you’re broken-hearted right now (Mimi and I are too), but I know sometimes it helps to think about the great times we all had with Bailey. And I think celebrating her life right now is what we all should be doing.

That’s what has been on my mind all day today – thinking about what a joy it was to know her.

I’ve been thinking about those walks with her through the woods and sledding with her at Deadman’s Hill;

about how she always just about knocked me over with her excitement whenever I first walked in the door;

about how worried she got when I pretended like I was attacking you;

about the amazing way she could chase a Frisbee and catch it like a champ;

about the times we fed her peanut butter and laughed as it stuck to her tongue and she tried to swallow but couldn’t;

about “where’s the kitty?” and “squirrel”;

and, most of all, all those games of “Bailey Number One” and “Bailey Number Two” that she wanted absolutely no part of, but patiently put up with our goofiness. “Whose got the….prettiest eyes?” Bailey Number……Two!” (But Bailey Number One had the longest nose and tail and hair/fur.)

Elizabeth, Bailey was one of the two most wonderful dogs I ever knew, along with “Lassie,” a collie-mix and my best four-legged friend when I was about your age. When she died – as they all do -- I felt like you do today. But after a while – and this may be hard to believe -- the hurt went away, replaced by happy memories that I still cherish after all these years.

I still smile when I think of Lassie. I’m doing it right now.

You will too, I promise.

We all were very lucky that we knew and loved Bailey and, wow, did she ever love us back!

Love,

Poppy

We love you and miss you already

Bailey passed away on February 4th, 2010. She died peacefully in the backyard.

Our daughter has lost her best friend in the whole wide world. They grew up together. She told Bailey all of her secrets, and they did everything together. They played in the yard every day, snuggled on the bed and watched TV, spent time at the dog park and were just generally inseparable.

For my husband and I, she was our first "baby". She came to us about a year before our daughter was born, she was our practice kid. She let us prove to ourselves that we were capable of raising and caring for another life. She was so unbelievably smart and sweet, she was loved by all. When you talked to her, she had such an intense look on her face, as if she understood every word. We could not have asked for a better pet, she was filled with unconditional love. She was so beautiful on the inside and out. She had an amazing personality, and we were so blessed to have her with us for almost 11 years.

Her passing is so unbelievably painful, and we miss her with all our hearts.