This is a story about my little buddy, Raggs

…also known as, Raggers, Raggamuffin, Raggaboo, and my Big Guy!

A beautiful tribute to Raggs written by Tina for everyone to enjoy…

The dates that he blessed my life were from October 4, 1988 to December 27, 2002. His birth date is unknown, but he was probably between 16-17 yrs old when he crossed-over.

I went to the Atlanta Humane Society to pick out a cat for a boyfriend and came home with Raggs instead. The guy was gone within a month and Raggs lived with me for over 14 years and became my soul mate, confidant, and protector. He was my best friend and a great teacher of unconditional love, responsibility, patience, courage and determination.

When I spotted this shaggy, Benji looking dog in the pound, he did not bark! I took him for a walk around the complex and he just wagged his tail. He was mine for the keeping, and a matted mess. I immediately took him straight from the pound to be groomed and they shaved his back end without my permission. Raggs came home looking like a lion instead of Benji!

Raggs was my first 'fur' kid so when I took him to the vet to have him neutered, as required by the humane society, I’ll never forget the vet’s words… “Well, Ms. Morris, he’s already been neutered”.

Okay, I didn’t look and didn’t even know what to look for.

Truly a rookie dog owner!

For the first few months he chewed just about anything he could find: books, photo album covers, cameras, wicker furniture and even a razor! He was busted at Christmas time when I came home and his paws and beard were totally covered in red dye. Raggs had eaten the red styrofoam apples off of the Christmas tree. He had styrofoam coming out the other end for days!

I would open the door to take Raggs for a walk and he would be gone for hours, always returning. We moved into a new apartment within a few months of our relationship and Raggs got out again the first night. It had been raining and there was Georgia red clay everywhere. When I returned home from dinner, there was Raggs on the second floor balcony; covered in red clay and it took three baths to see his natural color again!

Raggs went with me everywhere…baseball games, outdoor volleyball tournaments, boating and countless trips from Atlanta to New Jersey to visit my parents and their dogs, Chips and Bailey. I would drive the fourteen hour trip so that Raggs could go too, and it was usually just the two of us. He was my 40lb traveling companion, and he would sit on my lap while I drove. He loved to ride in the car with his head out the window and wear his goggles to keep the wind out of his eyes!

Raggs loved other animals and had lots of friends. Tammy, my roommate of seven years, had a cat named Chelsea. Chelsea would smack Raggs with her clawless paws right and left like a boxer and Raggs would sit there and beg for more, he just loved her!

We also saved a turtle named Lightning from the busy streets of Atlanta, only to have him exterminated on pest control day in our apartment, oops! Barnie, a Wheaton terrier came to live with us for awhile and Raggs loved her too. Raggs also took to Tammy’s horse Bart and would sit and stare up at him and just bark and bark for attention while Bart would drink his Pepsi!

Raggs attended every party and holiday function that Tammy and I had at our apartment and was always in the middle of everything and everyone! My little social butterfly got into the “hunch punch” one fourth of July and I truly understand where the phrase “sick as a dog” came from! He also got his feelings hurt when I yelled at him for drinking out of the toilet. Little did I know that he did not like the auto water feeder I had purchased. Thus, he responded by ignoring me for three days and living in Tammy’s room. I would walk in and he would walk out and vice versa! Then, he would turn his head sideways when I talked to him and roll his eyes, like I am not listening to you! What a funny little guy with loads of personality!

We had a major snow storm in March of 1993 in Atlanta and there probably was a good foot of snow on the ground. Since we were stuck at home, Tammy and I decided to make Raggs his very own snow suit out of grocery bags to protect his paws from the snow. He was not a happy camper when his feet slid out from under him on the carpet and he never even made it to the door. He was much happier without our imaginative creation of a snow suit, and totally enjoyed running around in the snow barefoot!

Raggs was a very determined little guy as we would come home and find him on the porch. Eventually, we learned that if we kept the windows open too far, he would push the screens out and roam the neighborhood! Good thing we lived on the first floor! When we were training Barnie, we put baby gates up to keep the dogs in the kitchen. Tammy and I would stand outside watching through the window, and within minutes, Raggs would have two of them knocked down!

He loved his treats, especially pig’s ears and popcorn and would get into the ice cream if we weren’t looking! He also loved his plastic burgers (his favorite toy) as we went through seven of them. Every year on his made up birthday, October 4^th, he would get a real burger with a candle and a party hat. Last year with his eye sight almost gone, but not the sniffer, he ate the burger and “lit” candle before I could put the camera down! He also loved to sleep in his beds and had several of them throughout the house. He would go to them on command and then plop down with a big huge sigh! If he wasn’t in his bed sleeping, he slept with mommy in his later years and would lay across me for attention and not let me get up!

Every year we remembered where he came from and would walk in the Pet Parade and raise money as a benefit for the humane society. One year, Raggs came in second in the pet parade trick contest doing the tomahawk chop and high five. He was a star and a great performer!

Some of my favorite memories would be of Raggs sitting outside enjoying the sun or digging in the pine straw. He just loved to dig in the dirt and then sit in it! You could always find Raggs inside the house by an open window with his chin resting on the window sill.

If you scratched his back, his entire body would shiver with chills! When he would finish eating, the couch and carpet were his napkin and he would rub his beard all over them. He had these big beautiful terrier eyes and long eyelashes which kept him from getting into trouble even when he was in trouble! He enjoyed bringing laughter and happiness everywhere he went, and he always made me smile; especially when he walked down the street with his tail wagging in the air!

Enjoying another day at the park!

For most of our fourteen years together, it was just the two of us. We did add several more fur kids to our family in the past five years. Bernie, is a 7 year old therapy dog, who looks like a St. Bernard mix and Britni, is a 2 year old, “funny” little Bearded Collie mix, and quite the princess. Both were rescues from the pound. My husband Bryan of three years, has a cat named Nikita (another rescue), who joined us in October of 2002.

Raggs had a tough time the last few years of his life and was plagued with several strokes. One that left him totally motionless in all four paws, and I was told by the emergency vet that he had a 20% chance to live through the night in April of 2000. We rushed him up to the University of Georgia, and the little trooper pulled through and lived another 2 years and 8 months after that episode! It was not easy and he fought until the bitter end. One night about 3am, I heard him screaming downstairs but I could not find him. He had walked into the bathroom and turned circles which closed the door shut and he could not get out! From then on, we had to keep all doors closed downstairs. It became such a habit, that we still do it! Raggs had a doggie wheelchair for the last four months of his life which helped him with mobility. It was pretty cool to watch him and his will to live, as he was a survivor!

Raggs had another stroke on December 16, 2002, and he almost made it, until he chose to stop eating when my parents (support group) arrived on December 22^nd. He rallied through Christmas and then it was time to cross-over on December 27^th, 2002. Our wonderful vet, Dr. Katie Wolzcek, came to our house, and Raggs went peacefully in my arms at home.

He was truly the love, joy and laughter of my life.

Back to Adirondack Pet Urns

The following links are video clips that Tina has provided of Raggs. To view them, click on the link. They require a video player on your computer and you have to be patient to wait for them to download as they are big files. I hope that you enjoy them as much as I did!

Raggs, video walking in his wheelchair

Raggs, he loved his treats!

Raggs walking in the snow, Britni with a snowy face!