He was always the one who followed me around the house, stayed close to me. Most evenings, he would be up here with me in the computer room - either on the loveseat, snoring; or under the computer desk.

He was my sous-chef extraordinaire, giving his silent approval for all dishes made. (And hoping that bits would miss the bowl and hit the floor.)

He was always on guard, protecting me from villains such as the mailman, other dogs, humans invading our sidewalk....or even the sidewalk across the street. If he could see them, they didn't belong.

He was my singer, involving Midget in choir practice with him each day. Arrrrroooooooooo!

Brimley, you are loved, and extremely missed.

Tonya

.

I thought she was actually a little better today. She stopped vomiting and I was able to give her the medications. She even took a little broth - from a syringe.

Paul came home early from work - and I had to go to teach two classes, so he was with her. When he realized that she was having more difficulty, he rushed her to the emergency animal hospital in San Mateo around 7 this evening - but it was too late. (Note: Fergie actually died in his arms as he carried her out to the car - he didn't tell me this until the next day.)

When I got home from school, Paul was waiting to take me to see her there, so I could say good bye.

I think I knew earlier today what was going to happen. There were several times when I was holding her that she looked at me and I could see in her eyes that she was saying goodbye.

We are having her cremated and I will scatter her ashes in the park, Milagra Ridge, where we live. We walked there every day and she loved to chase the rabbits, and check out the gopher activity. She'll always be with me when I walk in the park.

I'll never forget some of the wonderful moments with my sweet girl. One morning, shortly after I got her, we were walking in the park. We were on the top of the hill looking at a layer of fog blanketing Pacifica. The sun was rising behind us and our shadow appeared in the center of a sundog in the fog. On a ridge below us, a deer stood with the fog at its feet. I can still remember saying to Fergie, "Thank you, because if you weren't here, I would have missed this beautiful sight."

With her, I discovered the coyotes in our park - and she played with one, another experience I will never forget. I learned to look at the interesting things she investigated.

When I was actively volunteering with the National Park Service, she really enjoyed being with the groups of visitors and with other volunteers. She even had a column in the Site Stewardship newsletter called "Dog Talk" where she gave a dog's eye view of the park.

Recently, someone on the list mentioned how stoic our Scots are. They don't let us know when they are in pain. But, I knew that something was wrong - I just didn't know soon enough so I could do more.

I found Fergie through an ad in the newpaper, it said "Scottie F. 17 weeks. Very loving". I went to see her and fell in love. She came home with me that day, 8/16/93 and became part of our family. She will be in our hearts forever and ever.

GG & Paul

.