Betty's mama was a street dog who delivered a litter of 7 pups under an abandoned house and died of starvation 3 weeks after the pups were born, and that was when I brought Brown Betty home in 1995. She weighed 5 lbs and looked like a chubby bear cub. That night when I bathed her, what I thought were scabs on top of her ears, turned out to be flea nests!


As she grew, she was not a service dog, nor was she very smart. She did not do tricks or even fetch, But, what she did do was lay for hours with the grandkids. She always had either her stuffed baby or a human baby at her side.


We would say she had A.D.D., but, it turned out that she was deaf. She responded when I clapped and signaled with my hands.

Sweet Betty was a body pillow, a foot warmer and a pony for all the grandkids to ride(and even their parents when they were younger). Betty was everyone's dog...she had no favorites. She was, gentle, loving and patient.

At age 12 she was diagnosed with throat cancer. The doctor was always amazed that she had lasted  "yet  another year", when she was expected to live only 6 months.

She had beautiful brown eyes that seemed to look right into my soul like the wisest of sages.  These same brown eyes looked at me the morning she could no longer  get up. Her eyes looked into my soul again as if  saying "Mom, it's time, I can't do this anymore...help me". Our darling Betty crossed the bridge that morning, on her birthday, 15 yrs after I brought her home in 1995. I still miss seeing her on her carpet with a stuffed baby by her face... Always the protector...we loved you so, sweet girl!

Fall Land by Craft-tastrophic