Dodger was our first dog. We little realised when we took him home at 8 weeks how much he would come to mean to the family. My husband works offshore and so much of the time my daughter Andrea and I were on our own and he was a great friend and companion. Nearly everywhere that we went, Dodger came too. He was extremely affectionate, intelligent and so full of life. We were broken hearted when he died aged only 8 from heart disease.

Andrea, now aged 18, misses him especially. He always slept at the foot of her bed and no matter how loudly he snored or snorted, she loved him being there. His favourite game when he was younger was hide and seek and he would tear round the house at top speed and always sniffed Andrea or one of her friends out and would then loudly demand his reward. When Dodger was 4, we decided to get another Cavalier and he was joined by Lucky, who was 2. He had been owned by a professional family who did not have time to look after him properly. They got on quite well together but Dodger's best friend was Fergie the cat.

Dodger was beset by many health problems - chronic conjunctivitis, colitis and a weak back as well as heart disease. It was very rare for a week to go by without a visit to the vets, where he loved to go in the waiting room for a pat. The last week of his life was a nightmare. We knew he was deteriorating when he stopped eating. We took him to the vets and they decided to keep him in. They thought something else might be going on as well as his heart disease and put him on a drip but he gradually got worse and died on the evening of 4th May (1999). How I wish he could have died at home with his family but I suppose this very rarely happens. I am thankful however that I did not have to make the decision to have him put to sleep.

I wanted to bury him in a pet cemetery as I do not like gardening and my garden is rather neglected. There are very few pet cemeteries in Scotland but I heard about one in Perthshire within a wildlife centre. It is a beautiful peaceful spot. He is buried with his friend, Fergie beside him. Fergie had died aged 18 just before last Christmas. He had been cremated and until Dodger died, I could not make up my mind what to do with his ashes.

If you have enjoyed reading about Dodger, please email us at: Robert1@megie1.freeserve.co.uk

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