A Loss

Copper died suddenly and very early this morning. Eler Beth got up at 5 a.m., and shortly after that found him. We have no idea what caused his death. Perhaps he'd had a parasite that finally did him in. They are prone to several different types of parasites, and for the past several months he'd had some trouble with his back legs that left him slower than usual, although he never appeared to be in any pain.

My girl handled it very well. We cried together for a couple of hours, talked, hugged, and reassured one another that it was nothing we'd done. Eler Beth is a very fine steward of her pets.

This afternoon, all by herself, she dug a tiny little grave beside my yellow irises in the back yard, and we laid him to rest.

Rest in peace, Copper. You were a very special, tiny little companion for the time we had you in our lives, and my daughter so appreciates having had this unique opportunity to care for you. We'll miss you!