July 18/09
I have followed Li’l Linus’ progress so much and I must admit to having a virtual love affair with him. I have a physical challenge as well and feel a real affinity with him and his use of ‘doggie humour’ to fit in. My husband and I knew two fawn Great Danes 35 years ago. We visited their owners but really enjoyed them so much. They were Marcus, a real great big boy with a huge dark muzzle and I must say a little ‘stunned’. That was likely because his foil, the exotic and flirtatous, Tora (yes, named after the movie). She just LOVED men in beards and would sit coquettishly on the floor in front of Marcus perched on the settee, and slowly spread her hind legs and bat her beautiful brown eyes at whatever man she took a fancy to.
What a girl! They were both wonderful and we never got over our love of Danes.
The greatest memory of them was, oddly enough, when I was deathly ill with the flu. First the Danes came onto the bed (a pull-out couch) and then the house cat and then, astonishingly, George the outdoor cat joined them. Normally, there would be fir flying. These four never crossed paths without an incident but this time they stayed with I vomited repeatedly (a very unusual thing for me as I have a cast-iron stomach) and I only knew I was getting better as one by one they each left in reverse order to when they came. It was two days of ‘hell’ except for the incredible love and companionship of those four animals. Those Danes sure knew how to mold themselves to a person’s aching body!
As we only have a fence on two sides of our property, I know we cannot be considered to be the forever family for Linus but he will always be in our thoughts.
Thank you for all the work you and your husband do to make life so much better for so many animals. My dad was a country vet turned poultry pathologist at the OVC in Guelph. He often brought animals home to die after they had been used (abused) in experiments. I truly learned compassion for these tired and desperate animals. Dad was a farm boy from Alliston and valued every animal he met and could not be trusted to be the ‘on-call’ vet for Nassagawaya Twp. because he brought home (that’s what early rescuing was called) every animal from where he visited for animal abuse calls – that included one Welsh pony (Sam) and a wall-eyed black and white pinto pony named (you guessed it), Li’l One! They were in drastic shape but Dad nursed them well and they became a ‘deadly’ duo, breaking out of every enclosure where they were confined and my parents would receive phone calls noting the location of the infamous kids and would my parents come and get them. They especially liked blending in with herds of Holstein cows. If it wasn’t such hard work rounding them up it would have been a hoot. It certainly seems so 45 years later!
It was also something to read about Potter. What a great job you do. I will certainly remain a loyal follower of your site. God bless you all.