This imprint in clay of Sahraa’s paw was sent to us by the company used by the animal hospital to handle the remains of deceased dogs. I asked Tim if he thought it was really her paw, and he said he’d know those nails anywhere.

But I wanted to describe the outpouring of sympathy that we’ve received since Sahraa’s passing, first and foremost from all her friends on Pbase, for which we are so very grateful. But then, much to my surprise, our next door neighbor with whom I’ve had a somewhat rocky relationship in the past and who puts out a community newsletter for our local park, sent out a special edition the night she died devoted entirely to Sahraa. He had pulled 13 photos from my gallery (I wasn’t aware he even knew about Pbase) and published them along with something I had written about her. I was touched by his thoughtfulness. Then on Saturday, Friendship Hospital for Animals, where she had been treated in the end, sent a huge bouquet of flowers in her memory. Even the delivery woman wanted to know about Sahraa; I said it would make me cry, and she said crying is good. On Monday we received a card of condolence with handwritten messages from the two internists who had cared for her at Friendship. If that weren’t enough, a group of maybe 50 dog-friend people from the park had signed a card expressing how much she’ll be missed, and a number of people sent emails saying the same.

It makes me sad to relate all this, but at the same time happy that Sahraa was so well liked, and I just wanted to share it with you.

Like other Pbase friends who’ve lost their fur babies, I might post a few more pictures of her that I found, one in particular that I really like taken at the first ER vet we visited that day.

Best to view in "Original" because other versions resized by PBase are decidedly unsharp.

Fall is on its way, posted earlier: