The Duchess of Hope...

Rest in Peace my beautiful baby Hope.
Nov. 2, 2008 to May 11, 2012

In December 2008, a freak tornado blew through Plano, leaving our back gate standing open the next morning. Our beautiful Giant Champagne Poodle Sophie, who loved to chase bunnies, took off after a critter and took our sweet Miniature Schnauzer Ellie along for the run. Chad and I were desperately searching the neighborhood for them when I saw Sophie dart into traffic. We ended up losing both of our girls that day. Our heartbreak at losing them both led us to seek out and purchase our Chocolate Poodle Hope at the end of that same week.


Faith and her big sister Hope meeting for the first time on
July 22, 2009.


On Friday night, we drove to Willis Point and picked up Hope, also known as Hope-a-lopicus because she was so much like Snuffaluficus sometimes. I was captivated by Hope's green eyes and dark curly tufts. She was so tiny that she fit into the kangaroo pocket of my sweater, and that is where she remained for the first few weeks that she lived with us. Maybe this is why she was so easy to house train. I am sure it is the explanation for how she could play so rough with her daddy and be so gentle with me almost in the same breath.


Hope-a-lopicus loved playing in the snow.


After Hope had lived with us a couple of weeks, I took her to her first puppy wellness visit. I was absolutely devastated when the doctor told me Hope had a pretty significant heart murmur. I asked her what caused something like that in a puppy, and she told me it was probably because of in-breeding. At that I was furious but as much with myself as with Hope's breeders. Puppy mills bank on the emotional attachment of others. I for one wouldn't have changed having Hope in our lives either way. We would still have wanted to give her the best life possible even if we had known in advance.


Hope's first trek into the White River, June 2009.


Hope's heart issues had a plethora of challenges associated with them. For one, it made it impossible to have her spayed because we feared she wouldn't wake up from the surgery. Additionally, it required that she take twice-daily medication, an expensive endeavor each month. From everything we were told and everything we read, our Hope would have a very stunted life, probably not making it to her first year but definitely not making it more than four years. You can imagine that each November 2 that rolled through found us high-fiving and thinking that it was our love alone that kept Hope with us.



Hope and her big sister Darling Daughter resting
after our vacation in 2009.

My favorite memories with Hope-a-lopicus are immense. Besides living in my pocket, there was the first time she ever put her feet into the cold water in the White River in Arkansas. I thought she would run away but she dove right in and frolicked for what seemed like an eternity. I love the picture of her and Darling Daughter cuddling in the back seat on the way home from that trip. Teaching Hope to fetch her ball was all my doing. I was saddened when she couldn't keep going and eventually just stopped chasing the ball.

Sosie always says Hope's eyes
are too human looking. I think they
are the reason I thought of her like a human.

By far I will always love my girl for her keen sense of unconditional love and unending cuddles that she bestowed upon me when I lost my sister last year. Hope would crawl up next to me on the couch and just lay her head across my legs. If I was standing, she would come lean on me, putting her full weight against me so I knew she was there holding me up. If I was crying or if she thought Hubby Dearest was getting onto me, Hope always came and stood between us as if to protect me.

We lost the Duchess of Hope on Friday, May 11, 2012. I had spent the last few years just telling her that whenever she got ready to go, that she need only tell me, and I would make sure she was okay. Friday morning, Hope followed me around while I was getting ready for work. As always, I would pet her and talk to her as if she understood me. Something seemed off, but I was in too big of a hurry to take the time to really check her out. I gave her and Faith a cookie and promised them baths this weekend. I reminded them that Spanky and Froggy were coming to visit too. When HD called me at 1 p.m., he told me with tears in his voice that Hope had decided it was time. I rushed to meet him at the vet and held Hope as the doctor gave her relief from the fluid in her lungs.

Hope you were a very, very good girl. Know that we love you so very much. We will have to work on not throwing french fries in the floor for you.

NOTE: We are not crazy people...read this article in Phsychology Today to better understand attachments between humans and their pets.