Bonnie

In January 2005 I bought myself a retirement present, a little Westie puppy that I called Bonnie. She was the first dog that had ever been mine. We enrolled for Puppy Classes, then Basic Obedience, then Intermediate Obedience - together we learned everything she knew.

Three weeks ago, on 28th May 2010, my beloved Bonnie died. She was only 4.5 years old, way too young. She died of acute renal failure - even the vet didn't know what had caused it. It was definitely not due to anti-freeze, weed-killer, grapes or raisins. The only other possibility was that she might have ingested blue-green algae from the lakes over Greenham Common.

When Bonnie was 3.5 years old I noticed that whenever we came home from walks she would just slump in the garden, as if she was waiting for something to happen. I decided there and then that I would get a friend for Bonnie to play with. We registered with the Dogs Trust and within 2 weeks I received a phone call telling us about a male Westie aged just 2 years who was looking for a new home.

We eventually brought Bailey home to be a playmate for Bonnie.