Am.Can.CH.Shadowacre's Virtual Reality OFA

(Oct.1995 - Feb.2002)

(Inflight's Fly So Free OFA x Shadowacre's Dark Journey)

On a summer day in 1995, while gathered with friends, it was decided that we would breed our bitch "Shadowacre's Dark Journey" to "Inflight's Fly So Free". She was sent along with friends Pat and Kathaleen Strong to be bred and so began a trip of a lifetime.

Oct 8, 1995 the litter arrived. Imagine our surprise to find 4 of the 6 pups were bi colors! This was beyond our wildest dreams; I had never owned a Bi before. Of the litter, one young male soon began to stand out; he was stand-offish, giving a definite air of superiority over his littermates. He was the keeper and we called him "Virgil".

So many stories can be told about this dog - where do I start??

"Virgil" never went through the uglies.. he was always pretty much perfect. Well, except for the stubborn ears. His first show was in Washington State at the age of 7 months, and one ear refused to stand completely up. Bart Bartley showed me how to stick it up until just before the show, then take the tape out in a hurry just before the class. Well, ears was not our problem. Getting him around the ring was. Kathaleen and I tried all sorts of tricks.. the squeaky, the bells, the "Kidza-Kidz". Nothing. He paid attention to none of it. We were getting desperate, and Lew Bunch was getting annoyed. He wanted to SEE this dog! On the last try at gaiting the ring, I stood off in a corner and gave it my all...growling "Virrrrgggggg" His head came up, his ears perked up, everyone laughed and Lew yelled "Now you've got it!" he won the 6-9 puppy dog class that day, and he was "Virrrrrrg" ever since.

I took him to the Canadian National that year as a 9-12 puppy. Yep, he gave me a story (or 2) there as well. Kathaleen and I were relaxing in the hotel room after the first day. She had Lilly and Jamie Lee loose in the room, and then there was Virgil. The girls were boring to him so he entertained himself by standing on the bed and hurling choke chains in the air, watch them fall and do it again. Over and over. Lilly and Jamie Lee came over from their resting spots a couple of times to watch him. You could almost see them shake their heads "Kids!" He soon grew tired of tossling the chains, and took to exploring the cooler. He would pluck out chunks of ice and carry them over to the corner and chew them down. Over and over. Once he'd had enough, he chose to carry beer cans, holding them for me to put them back. Over and over. Then, he took it to the next level. He plucked one out, punctured it, and proceeded to drink the beer. You just never knew what he was going to come up with next!

The day of Best Of Breed, Kathaleen and I had the dogs watered and bedded down in their crates in the van while we went in to watch the specials. At one point in the day, there was an announcement: "There is a bi-colored puppy running around in the parking lot". Lilly was an adult bitch, Virgil was 11 months old - neither a "puppy". But both Kathaleen and I sprinted to the van, to find Virgil's crate door swinging open!!! Yes sir, it was him running around the parking lot. He was enjoying his freedom and wasn't coming to me or anyone else. I finally sat down in the middle of the road and called him. He came right over and looked at me as if to say "What the heck are you doing??"

Time went by. Virgil was shown in all breed shows and specialties - Canadian and American. We took our time, but he eventually became a Champion in both countries - my first.(you can visit his show career at Virgil's Page )

......Virgil finishes his American Championship!

Along the way, Virgil made inumerable friends. When Jack Kilgour was hired to handle him, the process of "being friends" had to come first. Virgil was a most discriminating dog; he was not one to let just anyone fool around with him. So, Jack, Virgil and Hank & I did "family" things - picnics, walks, Jack would simply come over and hang out. A friendship was forged that never dimmed. It was a sight to see - Jack and Virgil together- in the ring, as well as in the motel rooms. Virgil always brought along his ball. It was the game, you see, that had to be played before every show. Virgil nevered tired of Jack throwing the ball in the room, but Jack would. Once when this happened and Jack had quit, I heard him yell "he BIT me!!" I looked up and said "he doesn't bite, he sqeeeezes". Jack's arm was "squeezed" more than once in the process of finishing Virgil.

Virgil loved to travel, he loved the excitement of the shows, staying in hotels, jumping on the beds.
On One trip Cathy Wright shared our room. In her words:
(Quote)"He was a very special dog (He was a human in a dog suit.) Remember the first time he met me? I thought somebody had pinched my bum. I turned around and there was this beautiful Bi-Coloured Dog grinning from ear to ear wagging his tail. He had a thing for blondes! Remember the motel incident? Virgil kept ripping the covers off of me then barking and wagging his tail. I have never met a dog like him to this day. He truly had a sense of humour and he was extremely intuitive."(Unquote)

All along the way, this dog added to our lives. He protected our property, he entertained us with the "Ooga Booga"game he played with our daughter Brandi. He snuggled me when I was sad. He was also the strongest dog I have ever known. Whatever life tossed his way, he came thorugh with shining colors. A couple of years ago, he had an incident where the top of his muzzle was literal hinged up from the canines forward when he got it caught in a fence. He had it wired and recovered fully in record time.

But, last Oct he got sick. Very very sick with a bacterial infection. He was on massive doses of antibiotics and we thought he had recovered. Well, he had to a point, but never back to the way he was. At Christmas it became very apparent something serious was wrong. He was losing weight at an alarming rate. My vet and I tried everything - every antibiotic, every food, every treatment. He was taking 3 steps forward, 4 steps back. Of all the battles he had fought and won, we realized he was losing this one.

On the weekend of Feb 2/02, I knew he was going to die. He tried so hard not to. He tried to eat when I urged him to. He tried to comfort me by laying on my feet. He followed me everywhere in the house. His dam would come over to where he lay and lick his face, and then lay down with him. She knew as well. And on Feb 4, Virgil & I made our final journey together.

Virgil is free at last; free from the pain he has suffered over the past months. God knows we miss him so much - I'm not sure how we will go on without him. But I do know, he is playing the "Ooga Booga man" with some unsuspecting blonde, "sqeezing" the arm of his current ball partner.

We had quite a trip together, Virgil and I. My heart is quite empty without him.

Rest in Peace , "Virgilator-man".

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If It Should Be

If it should be that I grow weak,
And pain should keep me from my sleep,
Then you must do what must be done,
For this last battle cannot be won.

You will be sad, I understand,
Don't let your grief then stay your hand,
For this day more that all the rest,
Your love for me must stand the test.

We've had so many happy years,
What is to come can hold no fears,
You'd not want me to suffer so,
The time has come to let me go.

Take me where my need they'll tend,
And please stay with me until the end,
I know in time that you will see,
The kindness that you have done for me,
Although my tail its last has waved,
From pain and suffering I have been saved.

Please do not grieve, it must be you,
Who had this painful thing to do.
We've been so close, we two, these years,
Don't let your heart hold back its tears.

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