“To call him a dog hardly seems to do him justice, though in as much, he had four legs, a tail, and barked, I admit he was, to all outward appearances. But to those who knew him well, he was a perfect gentlemen.”-unknown

Dog walking With Gopher!

Three years ago, I recieved a phone call from a lady named Gayle, who was needing every day dog-walking for her Dad in Phoenix. I scheduled an initial meet and greet with Gayle, her Father (Bil), and Gopher the lab. While we were all talking about Gopher, I couldn’t help but to comment on the adorable painting above Bil’s head. It was a cartoon of Family Circus, and one of the kids was throwing an apple across the table at another kid. ” I just love Family Circus, cartoons, what a fun picture.” Bil smiled a huge grin at me, and at the same time I noticed he had an emblem of The Family Circus cartoon right on his shirt. His name: Bil Keane. Finally, the light bulb went off….You are THAT Bil Keane, the creator and writer of The Family Circus!! WOW!! Is Gopher really Barfy, like the dog in your cartoons? No….Gopher was a sweet yellow Lab that they rescued years ago. They guessed that Gopher was 12 years old at the time they hired us.  From that day on, every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday,  & Sunday, for the last three years we have had the Joy of walking Gopher.

Myself, Kristi Thorton, and Ashley Norton all took turns walking him. Kristi and Ashley would walk Gopher on Tuesdays & Thursdays, and I walked Gopher the other 5 days of the week. We took him dog walking first thing in the morning, & boy what a great way to start our day!!  We all loved Gopher and felt blessed to be able to spend time with Bil. (An angel on earth).

 They say dogs and owners sometimes look and act alike…..this was true of these two:)  Bil is a sweet, silly, witty, smart, charming, adorable dear dear soul. Gopher and his Dad shared these traits. The last few months,  the doggiesmyle girls and I knew that Gopher was slowing down a lot, and that each day we had with him was an extra blessing. It was still so heart breaking to hear the news of Gopher’s passing. There have been lots of tears, as well as giggles, as we recall our time with Gopher.

We Love You, and know you are running around chasing empty water bottles, coyotes, and bunny rabbits up in doggie heaven. You will be remembered often and missed always.-xoxo