This afternoon my neighbor Dave knocked on my door, and he brought sad news
that his beloved Papillon "Love Bug", affectionately and appropriately
called simply "Bug", had been attacked and killed earlier in the day by a
larger off-leash dog on a trail in the Loch Raven watershed. His arm was in
a sling while recovering from an operation on his shoulder, and he asked me
to help him dig a grave.

Initially I told him I probably could not help, because of my back
problems, but then I felt that I should at least try to do what I could, so
Muttley and I walked through the woods and found him and his young daughter
in the process of digging a hole at the edge of our property line. I
offered to help, but they were able to manage it, and I think they
preferred to keep it private, and digging the grave may have been helpful
for them to achieve some closure to this tragic event.

He said that both dogs were off-leash, but Bug was just sniffing around
when a big dog, also off leash, ran out of the woods and immediately
attacked his dog. The dog's owner showed up and tried to pull him off, and
Dave tried to kick the attacking dog, but they were unable to get him to
release him before doing severe damage. Dave picked up his injured dog,
wrapped him in his coat, and walked about 1/2 mile back to his car, but Bug
succumbed to his injuries, which included a punctured lung, about halfway
back. He said he left a note on the woman's car, but took no further
action. I'm sure he felt very guilty about not being able to protect his
dog, but he accepted part of the blame for not having thought to carry a
stick or other means to protect Bug.

Muttley and I usually pass by his place on our daily walks in my woods, but
we do not see each other very often. Last summer, when Muttley got loose
and ran around the edge of the property, he ended up at Dave's door, and he
came out while I clipped the leash back on Muttley. He remarked then that
Muttley seemed much nicer and less threatening than he had appeared to be
when they first met, and Bug seemed curious about him, but was clearly
afraid. We probably saw each other a couple other times in the fall and
winter.

Just this past Sunday afternoon, Muttley and I saw Dave and Bug in their
yard, and we came over for a visit. Bug seemed to be more bold with
Muttley, and they played with each other while I carefully watched. It was
cute to see Bug stand on his rear legs to be nose to nose with Muttley, and
they seemed to be having a good time, but I'm not sure Muttley knew exactly
what to do with this little playful dog. He lifted up his paw and initiated
a play bow, but there seemed to be too much of a difference in size and
temperament for them to play safely. I was able to pet the cute little
Papillon for one last time while Muttley was greeting Dave.

Coincidentally, just last night I watched the Celebrity edition of Cesar
Millan's DVD, and the last segment was about a family who had lost their
beloved dog, and after about a month of normal grieving, which included
their other dog, they adopted another dog as a companion. It was very
touching, and was also very informative about how to choose a new dog to be
a part of your family (or pack). I am actually quite impressed with Cesar's
abilities to sense the causes for behavioral issues with dogs, and train
the owners.

But I digress. This is about the untimely death of a beloved pet.

Run free, little Bug!

Paul and Muttley