Ollie’s Sister

~ beetleypete

Last week, we heard the sad news that one of Ollie’s sisters had to be put to sleep, after suffering acute kidney failure.

I don’t have a photo of Milly, but she was identical to Ollie in every way, as the only other brown pup in the litter. She was somewhat smaller than him physically, but otherwise they were impossible to tell apart facially.

The lady who had Milly lived in our nearest town, and a few years ago, she brought her to see us. Ollie seemed to know her instinctively, licking her face, and sticking close by her side.

He doesn’t know she has gone of course, but it made us feel so very sad.

RIP lovely Milly. 2012-2020.

62 thoughts on “Ollie’s Sister”

    1. Thanks, Elizabeth. Well-bred pedigree Sharpeis rarely live longer than ten years. Ollie is not a full ‘pedigree’,even though his father was a champion. Failing something ctastrophic like the kidney failure that killed his sister, our Vet thinks he might live to around 12 years.
      Best wishes, Pete.

      Like

      Reply

  7. Many breeds are not known to have long lives the ones that seem to have long lives are the mixed breeds or mongrels they live quite often to a ripe old age but it always sad when they go over the rainbow bridge 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  13. We had to put down one of our yellow labs at the start of the pandemic. It was a sad time as we couldn’t grieve like we normally would have. It was when everyone was staying at home except for essential outings. We’re grateful we have his younger sister, but I still miss him like crazy.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  15. It’s always sad to hear when a beloved passes away, especially when it’s sudden. 😦 It’s funny how you say Ollie and Milly looked so much alike. It reminds me of Cinnamon and one of her sisters, Ginger. Ginger (who was owned by a lady I used to work with) came from a litter a pups a year or so before Cinnamon’s litter. They had the exact same markings (even the same odd-colored nail), and the only way to tell them apart in appearance was that Ginger was smaller (more of a toy-size poodle than miniature poodle).

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  19. (1) Milly was identical to Ollie in every way. Did you check between the legs?
    (2) As a Miller, I like the name Milly. But I would have changed the spelling to Millie to make her thoroughly modern.
    (3) I noticed that Milly and Ollie have common letters in their name, and wonder if other siblings are similarly named. For example, a female could be named Billie (as in Holiday), or Dolly (as in Parton), and a male could be named Willie (as in Nelson), or Jolly (as in St. Nick).

    But, seriously, this is very sad news. Dogs are lovable companions with an all-too-short lifespan. Ollie seemed to instinctively know that Milly was his sister. I wonder if he instinctively knows she has passed? We still have much to learn about dogs and other animals.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. 1) That’s why I added ‘facially’. 🙂
      2) Nicely done.
      3) Their mother was called Molly. But only Ollie and Milly followed that trend. One brother was called ‘Blue’ and another ‘Max’. I don’t know the names of the other two. There were seven pups, but one died soon after being born.

      It is interesting to think he might know she has gone, somewhere deep inside his canine mind.
      Best wishes, Pete.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  22. It makes us all sad – but the outpouring of sympathy is a reminder that our love for innocent animals binds troubled human beings together. We are better people because of them. We are so lucky to have their companionship and look after them. A virtual pat and stroke from me to Ollie. Px

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  26. I’m so hear that Pete😢 I can definitely imagine how that would make you sad. I didn’t know Ollie had a sister 😔 Life lately moves so fast, this is once again proof that you need to enjoy every second of it. Take care Pete.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

All comments welcome

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.