The Passing of a Grand Old Dog

Mr. McCoy kept predators at bay here for eleven years. He also trained his replacement, Annie. Old age and the horrendous heat waves combined to do him in. Although we did all we could to keep him comfortable, the heat was ultimately too much for him. He fell into a deep sleep on Sunday, August 1st. Johnny put him down as he slept and buried him in the arboretum, not far from Shirley who died last year at age 15. McCoy was a much bigger dog than Shirley and it seems the bigger they are, the shorter their lifespan. 

We had bought Annie shortly after Shirley died so McCoy could train her. She wore him out but he did teach her the property boundaries, who belonged here and who did not... and that his food was his alone.  Here is a post I wrote last year about McCoy's training of Annie. Alas, she has not stopped chasing the goats when they run but she knew not to do it when McCoy was watching! https://anniepuppy.blogspot.com/2020/09/mister-mccoy-annies-playmate-teacher.html

Annie is now in charge of keeping the goats safe. She is just one year old and mostly interested in playing but she does mark her territory and bark at things McCoy barked at. Thank you, McCoy. We never lost an animal to predators while you were on duty. And you loved every child you met.