Tacking on to an old thread here...
Ivan rescued Blacky in 1995 as a puppy. She had extensive intestinal surgery when she was only 3 months old and recovered well. She was all energy and fun until the last year or so. One of the fastest dogs I've ever seen...she used to run flat out alongside the four-wheeler and managed to even pass it a few times! The Border Collie (we think) in her made her extremely ball-driven and she could spend hours on end fetching a tennis ball and chasing the grandkids as they played baseball in the backyard. She rode in the convertible and hiked Crabtree Falls with us when were dating. When we adopted Max in 1998, she taught him how to run through the invisible fence to chase groundhogs or visit the neighbor's barbeque, acres away! She loved sleeping in the bed and behind her favorite chair. His parents kept her (and Max) at their house, even after we bought ours.
She was his girl when we met in 1996 and has continued to be his first love, even though we also adopted Max, Mika and Decker Bug.
Over the last few months, she has bravely battled some sort of cancer. At 13 years of age, she fought through good days and bad days. In the last week, her body began to give up. She tried to stand and walk but spent most of her time laying in the grass. The entire family (and vets office) nursed her with pain meds, her favorite foods and love. She finally passed away this morning at home.
Rest in peace sweet girl. I hope dog heaven is full of open grass fields and flying tennis balls!