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Remembering Bob the Beagle
June 20, 1996 to October 23, 2003
Bob the Beagle, faithful loving companion,
may be gone but he lives on in our hearts and memories. |
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We'll Never Forget . . .
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Bob was a "barkless" beagle. We always suspected that during those four months before we adopted him that he was punished for barking. Another quirk that reinforced this thought was that Bob was afraid of sticks.
As a puppy, he wouldn't go
near or even walk over a stick.
Because he didn't bark to get attention, Bob would find us and put his head on our knees or scratch our legs.
This meant either, "I am hungry" or at night, it meant, "Daddy, it is time to go to
bed. Quit working, come on." He would also announce his presence by "flapping his ears." |
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Bob was a pretty quite dog, not prone to fits of excitement (unlike Betty). He did treat us with a "beagle dance" when we returned home. You'd have to see it to appreciate the dance. But basically he would rotate clock-wise several times, run away
for a short distance, run back to you and rotate again. These dance steps were repeated several times. If he was really excited, he'd stand up and put his paws on your belly. |
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Dave and Bob were good at dancing together. Bob would let Dave hold him upright by his paws and lead him backwards around the room. They were quite the sight. Too bad we never got a picture of that. |
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His favorite treats were ice cream, orange Popsicle's, turkey jerky, and liver sausage. He'd sit or hand-shake for a morsel. He had an interesting habit of thoroughly sniffing each bite, even though the previous bite was exactly the same.
To say he was picky eater was an understatement. When Bob was a puppy, Dave in desperation bought a variety of dry and wet dog food to entice him to eat. He put each on a carefully labeled paper plate and placed them before Bob.
Bob turned his nose up and wouldn't eat any of the
selections. That is when home-cooking became a regular occurrence. After researching doggie recipes we settled on a chicken, rice and carrot dish. It was seasoned with garlic. And that is what Bob ate. Later we changed to a doggie meatloaf of ground beef,
ground turkey, green beans, carrots, brown rice, navy beans, wheat germ, eggs and garlic.
This high-fiber recipe aided in expressing his anal sacs which often became infected. |
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Every new toy had to be taken outside. He would grab the toy and run through his doggie door - chew on it for a while and then bring it back in. As a puppy he was partial to the latex squeaky toys but grew to love stuffed ones. The only problem
being that he would "kill" the stuffed ones. He'd chew until he created a hole and then there would be a stuffing explosion all over the house or yard. The toys that really got him going were the ones with electronic sounds (like a bark or a voice). With those he would chew until
he broke the sound box. |
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Bob never liked the ceiling fan in our family room. Or at least he didn't like it when it was starting or stopping. The slow rotation of the blades frightened him. Once they were rotating at full speed, he was fine. Bob would periodically
glance up to check of the fan. He was ready for a quick escape, if need be. |
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Bob had his quirks, but we loved him dearly. |
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Look at that face. Bob's face was perfectly proportioned. He had large, rather fleshing ears, that were quite expressive. He'd perk up his ears when he heard "Ready?" - "Walkie, Walkie" - "Park" - "Let's Go" - just to mention a
few. He sometimes would have a crooked face. We would say, "Fix you face, Bob." Oh, by the way, "Didn't he have big beautiful eyes?" |
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His
Perch. He established his territory at the top of the stairs landing. We called it his "perch." He also liked to perch on the deck and watch the world go by. When we first moved into our house Bob avoided
climbing up the deck stairs. He'd go out his doggie door in the kitchen which led to the deck, climb down the stairs. On his return trip, Bob would come in through the doggie door in the basement and climb up the basement stairs to be back on the first level again. We
speculated that he was uncomfortable looking through the deck stairs as he walked up. It wasn't long before he overcame that phobia. Sometimes he would share his perch with Betty. When we'd bring out the camera or dress him up, Bob would go to the
stairs landing and pose. He liked having his picture taken. He liked to be above the action so he could have a "bird's eye view."
He and Betty played games with each other. He'd sit on his "perch" while Betty taunted him with her "come and play" bark. She might have a toy or not. She would bark and bark at him, then, like a flash of lightening, he'd dart down the stairs and
chase her. They would rough and tumble until Betty rolled on her back in a submissive position. |
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He'd spend long hours stretched out and/or napping. Pretty regularly the silence would be broken by the sound of Bob's dreams. It is difficult to describe the sound, imagine a howl that gradually got
louder and louder. His legs looked as if he were in a slow motion run. At times, he would wake himself up, and look around trying to figure out who was making all the racket. He liked to stretch out, curl up, or lay in what we called "the frog pose." Most
nights he slept under the covers by Jan's feet. |
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He loved Halloween. Bob honestly believed that the kids dressed up just to come see him. He'd wait by the door, in costume of course, and greet each child with a tail wag. They'd pet him.
None of the little kids seemed to be afraid of him. On warm evenings, Bob and Jan would sit on the porch and give out toys to the trick or treaters. |
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He was a great big brother to Betty. With a 5 year age difference, we were a bit concerned that he may not accept another dog. After all he was "king of the hill." But from the first
night, he was very tolerant of her and over time, learned to "play" with her. |
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His favorite activity was taking "walkie walkies" Dave coined that phrase. He started taking him for walks around the block when Bob was a puppy. Until Bob built up strength, Dave would have to
carry him part of the way. When he heard the magic words, "walkie walkie," Bob would sit by the door and wait for us to put on his leash. Everybody knew Bob. As we walked about, the neighbors and others would shout, "Hi Bob." They
only knew us as Bob's parents. His favorite part of talking walks was smelling all the old and new smells. He, of course, left plenty of p-mail. Never in a hurry to finish his walks, Bob took time to smell the flowers and everything else. When he found a good smell, he'd "slam on
his brakes" and not budge until he got a good whiff. |
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When Dave broke is wrist we got in the habit of driving "the kids" to the park (Hunter's Glen Lake) instead of walking there. So Bob learned that "park" meant getting in the car. He would go to the front door so we could attach his leash, then he would
lead Betty to the door that entered the garage. If we said "park" but meant "walk", he would refuse to walk the neighborhood. He had to get in the car and go to the park. It is funny, because Bob hated being in the car. Yet he would willing jump in the van. Then as soon as the engine started he would begin to drool. We kept a Bob's Drool Towel in the van to wipe his face.
After long walks he headed directly for the bathroom to enjoy a long drink of toilet water. What dog doesn't love toilet water? |
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