American Press Travel News March 12, 2020–Bob and Barb “Stopping to Smell the Roses”,  and remembering his best friends.

My first dog pal was Shishkabob, she was alternately covered in bands of white and black fur. She reminded me of my favorite skewered dish of Shishkabob. I don’t have an image of her for this article, just pictures of her in my memory. I was in my last year of college, It was February, the coldest month in Vermont and it was snowing. I looked out my apartment window and saw this dog next to the front door of a Jewelry store in Brattleboro, VT. It was shivering. A patron opened the door and I saw it run in. Donning my coat, I went down the stairs, across the street and entered the store. The owner was shooing the near- frozen- dog out of the store, and the patrons smiled and looked on. I asked if this was anyone’s dog? No one responded, and so I scooped her up, took her home and she became my first, 4-paw, best friend.

Terry lived with me for 14-years. She really lit-up my life. Long gone now, I remember her funny, and sometimes delightful antics. My second dog was when living in the Florida Keys. It was a rainy New Years and Barb heard about a dog that was being held, but being mistreated by this family in Key Largo. The puppy-dog was 7-months old. He was being left in a closet in a plastic garbage bag with his muzzle taped, so when the owners who were tenants, and not allowed to have a dog, left their home, he couldn’t bark. I took him, after being extremely gruff with the people, cleared him of ticks and worms, and Charlie became my dock-dog. He too made it to 14-years. He was our traveling companion all over the USA as we traveled in our motorhome, fly fishing America!! My third dog also traveled with us around America. Terry, mixed up Terry, was our fabulous pal for about 14-years too! Terry saved me from a huge tree that fell in the exact spot I had been standing, one evening at our farm. He pulled so hard and whined that I walked away from repairing a solar fence light. The tree fell seconds after I was away from the fence. We buried Terry 2-years later after his kidneys failed, on our farm, with a carved granite head-stone made for me by a Cherokee Indian in Alabama. Dogs-just cannot live without them, and for me it was proven!!!!