This week saw the passing of my family's beloved dog, Leroy. For the past few years my parents have been taking care of him and it was time for him to pass on at the ripe old age of 15 years.

Although I hadn't spent as much time with him recently, I'll miss him dearly. He was just such a crazy, loveable mutt. We adopted him from the SPCA and at the time I wondered why my dad picked him. He was this scrawny, lanky black pup with oversized flappy ears. The first time he howled we all wondered what the heck that noise was...it started off like a typical dog howl then it evolved into a bansheelike screech. He never outgrew that.

Oh Leroy, the things I will remember about you: how you did anything to avoid getting wet, your unruliness during walks, how you'd use your paws like hands to grab and hold things, your crazy running around in circles, how you loved to laze in the sun, your squatting, how you hated to chew on anything hard, your miserable pout when I dressed you up for Christmas photos, your 'popcorn' smell...

I hope you're enjoying chasing ducks, lying in the sun and getting scratches behind your ears up there in doggy heaven. I love you.