Scout and Murray On the Rocks...Oldie but goodie, from July 2010 Melanie Schlaginhaufen Well it seems that Poodle clowns Murray, age 2 and Scout, age 6, were in the water once again this past weekend. These two can take even the most picturesque setting (this time at Great Pond, Aurora, Maine) and add a bit of humor. This one I call Scout and Murray On the Rocks (no, that is not a new drink!) Chris has been so kind through the years to send photos for the poodle blog, as well as photos of "real dogs" for my dog training blog. Rick Miles is another wonderful Poodle photographer who has been very generous in contributing photography for my articles through the years. Thanks Chris and Rick! Also special thanks to Scout and Murray! Quick note now, nine years later...(February 2019) Rick Miles, perhaps I need to work on an article about unusual colors of poodles, since not everyone knows they come in multi-colors! I would love to introduce your lovely black and tan...

This article was originally published here on the Poodle blog in 2011. Because I have been speaking to several people recently who are deeply grieving a beloved pet, I decided to update it and repost, in hopes that it might be of comfort to someone. I have sat where you are sitting. I have stood where you are standing. I have stood frozen with my hand on the door because I dreaded opening it--I did not want to go into a house that was missing the dog I so deeply loved. A friend of mine is today, as I write this, grieving a dog that she lost way too young. I want to share something with you what I just shared with my friend. Although at times it feels like yesterday, it was ten years ago that our lovely Standard Poodle Lizzie was diagnosed with lymphoma. We spent the summer that year driving her back and forth to a wonderful veterinarian that was almost an hour and a half from our home. She did not respond to the treatments as well as we had hoped. Often her blood count would drop...