In memoriam: Kira Whipple

We only had Kira for a short 6 months. We adopted her in April 2010, and we lost her on November 12, 2010. She was only 14 months old.

It was a complete and innocent accident, but it has had the most significant and final result. She was playing with her “pack,” which includes our Dexter and our friends' dogs Rio, Bandit, and Rusty. Kira and Bandit (her favorite bitey-face companion next to Dexter) were playing in my friend's backyard. Kira, as she was wont to do, flipped over onto her back playfully. Bandit's jaw got caught under Kira's collar. Bandit could not get free, and as he tried, he made the problem worse. When Jen got to them (only after a matter of seconds), she tried so very hard to get Kira loose. But she couldn't even get her fingers between the collar and my sweet girl’s neck. Kira died in her Auntie Jen’s arms. 

I am so very thankful for the time we had with Kira, though it was only a short 6 months. She was arguably the happiest girl I’ve ever met. She was perpetually smiling, and she wanted to talk so badly—she'd tell us all about her day when we came home with her little howls, yips, and growls. Whenever she got a toy from Dexter, she would prance around proudly, showing it off to whoever would look at her.  I would call her my dressage dog—she had such long legs and she was so graceful. She moved like a trained dressage horse. She could never get close enough to her people. She would literally try to get as much of herself touching as much of me, Dustin (my husband), or whoever was sitting on the couch as she could. She adored my dad more than anyone or anything else. I never thought a dog could wiggle as much as she did when he visited. She was such a fabulous addition to our family, and I am eternally grateful for the time we had with her, short though it was.

 Rest in peace, my sweet girl. You are painfully missed.