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Welcome to our celebration of Mellow Yellows,
those senior Golden ambassadors that guide us by providing their life lessons of wisdom,
patience, an d inner beauty. Surely, one only needs to gaze into our Goldens’ eyes to
hear them speak a wondrous language of contentment and understanding. ... As Helen Keller
so beautifully conveys, “The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot
be seen or even heard, but must be felt with the heart.” That is the
way with the fur-ever love that our
Goldens bring, as their pawprints weave timeless memories within our hearts and souls.
They say that a fair face may fade, but a beautiful soul lasts forever. This special
contest had the task of capturing that ‘aged to perfection’ essence on film as
life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by those moments that take our
breath away.
Inspired by the September 2002 publication of Jasper’s
Day, a children’s book on euthanasia and loss written by
Marjorie Blain Parker
and illustrated by Janet Wilson, the top 10 Senior Fur-Ever Love judged top
entrants won a personalized copy of this publication.
With genuine sensitivity, Marjorie leads readers through an elderly, beloved Golden’s final day. In pain from incurable cancer, Jasper’s
family has agreed to make his last day a happy one before he is
finally taken to th e vet. They prepare Jasper a special breakfast, take him for a car ride
to his favorite stream, and pay Grandmother a visit. The entire family is later involved in Jasper’s
burial in their backyard. They also engage in a special ceremony in which they talk about
Jasper and their lives together with him. The book closes with young Riley’s desire
to memorialize his beloved friend by constructing a book of his life—a collage of
photos from puppyhood on—so beautifully detailed in this large 9” x 10” picture
book.
Janet Wilson, who lives in Ontario,
used a Golden Retriever named Kayleigh as the model for her Jasper illustrations, further
providing the following insight. “With my realistic style I paint my pictures using
photographic reference for the main characters in the book. To cast the role of
Jasper I auditioned dogs in my small village. When I saw a friend’s dog, Kayleigh, a
Golden Retriever, I knew she would be the perfect model for Jasper. Kayleigh suffers
from arthritis and for a big dog she has lived a good long life. We almost lost
Kayleigh before the pictures were finished, however. There is a river that runs
through our town which dogs love to play in. This story happened when the river was
frozen. She was playing on the ice with her brother who was much younger when the ice
broke and Kayleigh fell in the icy water. She was clearly in distress when the other
dog grabbed hold of the scarf you see in the paintings. Unfortunately that scarf ripped
apart and Kayleigh fell in again. Then the younger dog grabbed the older one by the
scruff of her neck and hauled her to safety.”
Our top ten winners received signed copies of Jasper's book, and our honorable
mentions a bag of Aunt
V's K9 Krunch.
Dear Rochelle, I just read the page with Jasper’s Day on it. It brought me
to tears because I remember when we had to make the choice of putting our Dalmatian down.
She had spinal arthritis and it was getting to the point she was losing her quality of
life. I took a day off from work and spent it with my dog. Let her eat whatever she
wanted...she chose steak. I am thankful I did that because it gave me time to say good-bye
at a leisurely pace. Then we had the vet come out to the house to euthanize her. She laid
under her tree on her favorite pillow. It was a very difficult thing to do, but I would do
it again in a heart beat. Our pets give us years of love, life & laughter. It’s
the least we can do is to escort them to the next life. I miss her dearly, but I now have
a Corgi who is the light of my life. She reminds me how precious life is and not to take a
single day for granted. — Best wishes, V
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Young Cancer Bridge Kids Contest Addition
 While Jasper, the Golden depicted in Marjorie's book,
had succumbed to cancer at a senior age, there are sadly many Goldens who are being
diagnosed with cancer at ages as young as one year. It is an issue that fortunately is
getting more attention as we all hope for research findings to
lead us into the right direction. Having worked with pediatric oncology patients, it is
commo n to see youngsters as young as six become adults overnight as they handle the
physical rigors of their treatment regimens as well as the emotional awareness of the
seriousness of their illness. Although our Goldens do not understand their illnesses in
the same way, they do experience physical effects that can age them almost overnight.
Suzi Beber tells her story about such a loss: “Each of us has been touched by cancer in one way or another. We can try to
run and hide, but inevitably, its evil grin will cross the threshold of our homes. It
crossed ours in the summer of 2000, and our lives will never be the same. On March 27,
2001, our beautiful Blues lost his battle with lymphoma. He was the sun and moon and stars
to us. He was our Smiling Blue Skies.”
 In Blues’ memory, a special cancer
fund has been set up through the University of
Guelph’s Ontario Veterinary College Pet Trust Fund. Suzi, who is
disabled herself, has raised over $14,000
[2/03] for canine cancer treatment and research, creating the most wonderful
Smiling Blue Skies
Ceramics, all proceeds from her sales going directly to this fund.
Suzi donated a lid-name personalized “W ho Me?” Cookie Jar ($65 value) for the 1st place
entry and a Goldens Galore Latte Mug ($30 value) for the 2nd place entry to honor those young Goldens,
who like her Blues Man, have lost their battles to cancer. So, while the main thrust of the contest
was a Senior-focused one, we extended the contest to honor those young Goldens (ages 7 and
below) who have been taken from us.
In addition, the remaining entrants are
receiving a gorgeous pewter Golden Puppy Face Pin ($12 value). The pin will be attached to Suzi's most unique Blues greeting notecard (blank inside, with matching envelope) that
offers the special thought—Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remained unawakened. We just
adore this multi-purpose card which shows Golden Blues waiting at the door.
Delight in our Winners and Many Entries
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