Happy Birthday, Faithful Companion

Our faithful family canine, Colonel Mulholland of the Irish Brigade, or Colonel for short, turns 12 years old today. He's a Brittaney, and as such a natural hunter, though he's been solely a house dog. He is however quite adept at catching moles and voles, and there's not a blue-tailed skink near our house that has a complete tail. He is also an impressive stalker of birds, rabbits, squirrels and turtles in the yard. Colonel's an old dog with a very young heart.

As a pup, his energy was boundless, often bordering on manic. But he's mellowed with age, and now spends most of his time sleeping. He often insists on resting with his paws on top of the feet or arms of one of his humans. After all these years he's now claimed, with little resistance, couch privileges. Colonel's still a tough old dog, having survived the years with a heart murmur, erliychia, numerous wasp stings, uncountable scrapes and cuts from running through the woods, and even two copperhead bites (the most recent just two weeks ago). Yet, he just keeps on going! He rotates his time equally among family and friends, allowing everyone the opportunity to scratch his chin.

Best. Dog. Ever.

His play time is less frequent these days, but he'll still greet you at the door with noisy exuberance. Well, if he's awake that is.