TAYLOR

23 NOVEMBER 2005 - 10 JUNE 2014

BUFFALO TAYLOR MAID

In May 2014 we were received the devastating news that our great good friend Taylor had been diagnosed with a brain tumour. Unfortunately, there was nothing that could be done about it, and it was judged inevitable that her condition would slowly worsen. By early June, it had become obvious that her time had come. She was such a lovely, gentle lass, and her passing greatly saddened us.

These words in memoriam were passed to us by her owners, Scott England and Kate Field:

Taylor's days as a mother and show dog ended when she had some mammary tumours and was spayed, but she made a full recovery and retired to our home in Canberra. In doing so, she followed her mother Dayna, who had come here three years earlier but sadly was no longer with us. Taylor joined her 'uncle' Angus at our home; then later, Taylor's daughter Phoebe came to live with us too, so mother and daughter had some months together.

Amongst all the Buffalo golden retrievers we have known, Taylor marched to the beat of a different drum. She was placid, gentle and quiet, always the one to wait patiently whilst the other dogs jostled for attention; when the opportunity allowed, she would gently place her forehead against our legs and lean on us, knowing that she would then get her pat.

Taylor's one passion was wildlife. In her previous life at Buffalo Kennels, she took off after a rabbit one day and broke her owner Sandra's foot in the process. Her technique was to creep very, very, quietly, then ... RUSH HEADLONG BARKING WILDLY! Mostly it was all just fun, but Taylor did bag a pigeon one day, which she proudly 'retrieved' to us. Of course, Taylor being a soft-mouthed retriever, the pigeon suffered no more than a few lost feathers and a bruised ego.

One day at Commonwealth Park a phalanx of swans flapped wildly along the lake then zoomed over Taylor's head; Taylor was so incensed by this behaviour that she gave every indication that, had she not been on a lead, she would have found a way to soar into the air and apprehend them.

Taylor's time with us was much too short. Our most enduring memory of her will always be her gentle and affectionate nature.