Losing our Golden Girl ~

Kittaka was special from the very beginning. Sweet, loving & smart - quick & fast. Beautiful as could possibly be & rare.  At her very first trip to the Vet for vaccinations, we were warned that she was a either a wolf or coyote hybrid. 

 I pulled up to our gate one afternoon to see something thrashing at the north pasture fence. It was a deer Kitt had hamstrung. I got the rifle, asked Kitt to get away & shot the deer. She also loved to hunt Squirrel - then eat them! I understand Squirrel meat is actually very good. Since ours live on the nearby walnut trees, I'm sure they were!

Raised by our 7-year old Beagle, Abby --  Kitt did her best to dominate :-) As she grew taller, she would stand over Abby & the two of them looked like a dog with 8-legs. When we took the two of them with us to the Alpine endurance ride camp - she spent the day hopping around the pasture catching grasshoppers :-)  She also learned to hunt for grubs. Each spring & sometimes in the fall, she could be found sniffing around the yard. Stopping, digging a bit with a paw - then eating whatever grub it was. I attribute all that fine protein to her longevity.

Kitt & Abby - 2-25-1999

The only time she had an "accident" was when she found & tasted slug-bait. We raced her into Pilchuck Veterinary Clinic & she survived without any problems. That was the end of slug-bait on the Homestead. 

She grieved with us at Abby's passing in 2004.  When Rowdy came home with us, she took on the responsibility of teaching him our routine.  She loved him as though he were her own & spent hours playing with him - he could get away with almost anything!  We were amazed...

Rowdy & Kitt - 2-10-2004

The two were an almost inseparable pair.

Kitt & Rowdy - 1-9-2005

At the age of twelve, she suffered with us when we lost Rowdy.  We were all so lonely, we again searched to find another Beagle & came home with Rascal.  Kitt tolerated him, but he couldn't replace Rowdy.  He had to make his own way & find his own path to our hearts.

Kitt with Rascal - 11-1-2009

 We had Coyote's around in the early days, some evenings they would start to howl, setting off the dogs in the valley. Kitt would walk out to the center of our driveway - puff herself up & send off her own howls. They were so incredible - you felt you were listening to Wolves in Alaska. After her first howl, there would be utter silence!~ Not one more bark, not one more howl, nothing. She would finish her song with a flourish & strut away - Queen.

As she aged & lost her hearing, the howling stopped. We have no idea why - but it was a terrible loss to us. My first cell phone with a video mode, I managed to catch her song one morning when emergency vehicles went by down the hill.  I think I somehow knew those songs were numbered.

Here. I'll share with you - as a final tribute to the finest canine companion any mere mortal could ever possibly hope for ~