I'm 55 years old and I've had many pets in my life. I would like to honor as many as I can remember. First were the frogs that I collected a age 5. I still love them. Then came the parakeets, all named Tweety. I wasn't too creative. Then Georgie, my first dog. He got distemper and Dad had to shoot him. I found out years later that Dad was too heartbroken to do it, and had a friend do it for him.

They came Teenie, the best Chihuahua ever. She only lived about 8 years and passed away of cancer.

Now comes Boompa (we didn't name her), Pebbles (she had epilipsy), Puppy, Steve and Edie (goldfish that have been gone for years), Killer (the shark), Homer (the Hamster), Tommy (the turtle), Soda (a Brittany Spaniel), Fritz and Hunter (a pair of Yorkies), Orange Kitty, Kitty Joe (she left and never came back), and then there's Doofus, a feral (sp) cat that we took in last winter. We found him almost dead under our truck at a campground in Minnesota. We took him in, nursed him back to health over the winter and let him go. He was never meant to be an indoor cat. We hope he is still alive, but we haven't seen him.

My final tributes are to a deer named Dutch and a goat named Angel. Dutch was regal. He had a huge rack on his head. He lived in the petting zoo at our campground. The herd escaped and the only one we never found was Dutch.

Angel was a pygmy goat. She was trying to give birth to two kids and died in the process. Our hearts were broken.

The passing of any animal that you love is sad. But, you can put new light into your life. We now have Rona, a Chihuahua mix (full name: Macaroni Arizona Knutson) and Minnie, a prue bed Chihuahua (full name: Minnie Sue Cooper). They are much too wonderful.

I've had many pets during my life...I've loved them all, including the frogs. Take them into your hearts and love them. Miss them when they go. Replace them when you feel right about it.

With Love to All Fur Babies (including birds??)

Debbie