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In Memory of Taz
November 22, 2005
 At
approx. 11pm on November 22, 2005 our beloved Taz passed away
after a very severe, very quick illness. We take some satisfaction
that at least now his pain has stopped and he is in a better
place.
Taz came to us in the summer of 2005 when Whiskerville called
and told us they had an absolute ball nut they wanted us to
look at for the military canine training program. When we
took Taz out of his kennel to test his ball drive, it took
me all of 2 minutes to see that he was exactly what we were
looking for. We immediately took him in. 2 weeks later we
found out he was heartworm positive. While he was in treatment,
we found that his age, which was thought to be between 4 and
5, excluded him from the military program. So we decided that
when he returned to us, we would train him for ourselves as
a detection dog to be used in local schools.
I've handled numerous dogs in my career, but I have never
worked with a dog that could be so excited, frantic, determined
and focused all at once. Dogs like Taz are found in 1 of 500
if you're lucky. He constantly wanted to please you, but he
always had a great time doing it. He was friendly to everyone
he met. Whenever we took him out to work or train, people
always commented on what a handsome boy he was. And although
he couldn't sit still for more than 1 minute at a time, his
manners were excellent.
 The
only exception to this was at dinner, or snack time. After
you gave him a cookie or set down his food pan, you always
need to count your fingers. I think eating was the only thing
he enjoyed more than working. But when the day was done and
he was just running around in the yard, he would come over
to your chair and look at you with those big brown eyes. He'd
just stare at you as if he were reading your mind, or maybe
trying to get you to read his. I'd always hoped he was thinking
"thanks for taking care of me".
Even though Taz was only with us a few short months, he touched
our lives in ways no other animal ever has. He will always
be in our thoughts and our hearts. Once we're done grieving
his loss, we'll begin to celebrate his life with us. We wish
it could have been so much longer. I think he deserved that.
But I guess the greater power felt he needed him more. I know
Taz is in a place where all of his pain is now gone, and there's
no end to the balls he can chase.
Taz, please know how very special you are to our family.
We will always love you and will never forget you.
Danny, Peggy and Stephen Kay
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