Top

           Top was our first dog.  Last week was the 20th anniversary of his death in 1997.  Some of you knew him, back in the day.  This was what we read, when we spread his ashes on one of our favorite hikes.

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           Top was a little over 17 years old when he died on January 2nd, 1997. He spent a little over 16 years traveling around the world with us, and lived in Germany, Georgia, Ohio, and Virginia. He visited, among other places, Austria, Switzerland, France, and Italy in Europe, and had multiple trips to Alabama, Illinois, and West Virginia here in the States. He understood two languages (German and English) and we used German throughout his life if we really wanted to make a point with him. 

            He loved the outdoors and liked to go on hikes. A year before he died, he was in good enough shape to do an eight mile hike with us, and in October of ‘96, he was still able to go two miles on a hike in West Virginia.

            He also loved to chase other animals. Deer, rabbits, birds, chickens, bees and flies (yes flies – he use to be able to catch German flies!) – it didn’t matter – if they were within his field of vision, he was after them. At one time or another, he brought to ground all of the above, and to this day he is still known as “Deerslayer” in some circles. He also liked to keep our neighborhood free of cats, although later in life he became friends with Vincent, our neighbor’s cat.

            He could be mischievous and gave us plenty of tales to tell later – stealing half a ham; eating a jar of jelly beans; opening the front door to let himself out; breaking through a screen window to wander the neighborhood; killing one of Uncle Eugene’s chickens; rolling in horse manure at the stable; eating the topping off of a cherry danish – after these or other similar incidents, no matter how much you tried, you couldn’t stay mad at him for long. How could you stay mad at your little buddy?

           Top was a good dog and a good friend. We will miss him, but already we are less sad when we think of him, and that is how he would have liked it. He was a dog that touched many lives around the world and brought joy to many people. His antics and actions have given us enough stories to fill a book and we will remember these and think of the good times we had together. He protected us over the years (or thought he was protecting us!) and tried to keep us safe from harm in many ways. He was our companion and was with us for most of our journeys through life, both literally and figuratively. 

            One of Top’s favorite hikes was to Tibbet’s Knob and that is why we brought him here. He liked this place and we hope that in the future he will once again chase the deer and the rabbits here, will bark at the hawks, and get into other dog-type mischief. We also hope that when we or our friends come here, we will take a short pause, remember the good times with him, and raise a toast to Top, The Deerslayer, our best friend.