BETSY

This is my first dog, Betsy, a one-eyed Chihuahua/Beagle mix who came into my life when both of us were at the age of twelve in 1995. She had been abused and abandoned by her previous owners and we never found out exactly how she lost her left eye, but she was my best friend for six years. In the last year, when both of us were 18 years old, her health began to decline. We believe she had cancer. She was in alot of pain and I made the hardest decision I've ever had to make in my entire life...I decided it was time to let her go. She was put to sleep around 5:00pm on April 5th, 2001 and I stayed with her and held her in her final moments. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do, but if I had to do it over again, I wouldn't change a thing. Sometimes we come to a point when we have to help our animal friends get to the Bridge...sometimes they don't want to approach it alone. Betsy will live on in my heart and my memory and I am confident that one day, we will be reunited...because all dogs go to Heaven.

NACHO aka "HUNCH"

This is Nacho, the only bird I have ever owned in my life so far. He was a beautiful orange "frosted" canary given to me in spring of 1996 by a friend. He was a beautiful singer and had such a comical personality for a bird. He was pretty aggressive for a canary...definitely not the cute, innocent "Tweety Bird" type. I'm not kidding...he thought he was an eagle. He liked to "attack" anyone who came near his cage by spreading his wings wide, opening his mouth, and making high-pitched chirping noises while trying to snap at the tresspasser. He even tried to attack the Schwan's guy one summer when his cage was out on the front porch! He earned the nickname "Hunch" when my brother made the comment that he looked like the Hunchback of Notre Dame when he puffed himself up and glowered down at people from his cage. From then on, he became known as "Hunch" and he knew that name well. You were sure to get a response if you called him "Hunch". This remarkable bird survived a freeze one night when I forgot to bring his cage inside, a flood when he got left out in a rain storm, a tornado, and a hurricane, both of which, fortunately, he was NOT outside to experience. Canaries have a lifespan of six to seven years. This guy made it to ten! He was born in 1993 and he finally passed away of old age on January 20th, 2003. He died peacefully in his sleep and, as with Betsy, I miss him terribly...my whole family is grieving. Good ol' "Hunch" will live on in my heart and my memory and I am confident that one day, we will be reunited...because all birds go to Heaven.

WADDLES

This is my little brother's hamster, Waddles. He was his first furry pet and my brother named him "Waddles" because he waddled when he walked, ran, etc. He was quite the noisy little rodent at night, thumping on his wheel and chewing the plastic out of the cage. During one of our many moves, he got loose in our van for a couple days and he was glad to be back in his cage when Mom finally found his little fuzzy butt. My brother got him in May of 2001. We weren't sure how old he was when we got him, but we had him for nearly two years. He just passed away March 6th, 2003. Waddles will live on in our hearts and memories and we're confident that one day, my little brother will be reunited with him...because all hamsters go to Heaven.

SCOOTER