Boo dressed as a witch (Photo courtesy Linda Porter)
Hello, dear friends. There are times in our lives when you meet someone who is more than special. I am of course, talking about dogs, and, OK, some cats. Why not, they are family, too. This month I would like to focus on someone extra, extra special; Boo Rodrigues, of New Harbor. I did not get to meet her, but my mom did and has been very much impacted by this amazing dog.
Let me back up a bit. My mom started working a few hours a week at Meadowsweet Inn for Dogs this past spring. She is half retired from her full-time job at Mobius Inc. as a program manager and wanted to find something totally different, something she would love. She loves dogs; what could be more perfect?
This is a story about Boo (I wish I could have met her.) She passed away with her beloved mom and dad, Tom and Michele, at her side on Aug. 19 of this year after a sudden illness, leaving many heartbroken people, especially Tom and Michele.
Boo was found as a stray in Arkansas and was thought to be a 4-to 6-month-old corgi/pug mix, born in 2009. She was in foster care with Judy from Paws and Claws in Hot Springs, Ark. and was given the name Bethann. Michele and Tom saw her post on Petfinder and well, that was that.
Boo arrived in Maine at the Wiscasset Elementary School parking lot via the Last Chance Highway in August 2010 and found her forever home with Michele and Tom. Michele recalls their first meeting with Boo growling at her. Undaunted, they took her home for a trial run.
Love won out and Boo became family. When thinking of a name for her and fairly sure her birth month was October, they picked Halloween for her birth date, and Boo seemed a perfect name. I am personally partial to Henry, but Boo is a pretty cool name. We have a Boo in our house. She steals my toys. I bet this Boo wouldn’t have.
Boo dressed as a pirate (Photo courtesy Linda Porter)
In 2011 Michele and Tom came across an ad for Meadowsweet Inn for Dogs and after meeting Robin Beavis, the owner, knew they had found the best boarding place for Boo when they traveled. Boo loved everyone there right away. She was treated like the queen she was. She even won a Halloween costume contest, dressed as a pirate. Robin recalls that Boo was one of her original customers, “a sweet and trusting girl.”
Most of the dogs at Meadowsweet seem to love Maria, who works there, but Robin always felt that she was Boo’s favorite. She especially loved dinnertime and had trained Robin well to make sure she was the first one fed.
That same year, Boo earned her beginners dog obedience certification. Being such a good and super well-behaved girl, of course she passed! A DNA test would later prove Boo to be a beagle mixed with Shetland Sheepdog and a small percentage of other breeds.
In August 2022, Boo met Hank, her 5-year-old adopted brother from Alabama. She took it in stride, and they soon became very close with a strong bond. When both were at Meadowsweet, she would be the “big sister,” watching out for him.
Some of Boo’s favorite things were food and dental chews. She would bark and jump for joy at dinner time. My mom says this is true, having witnessed this feat (jumping) several times. Boo seemed unaware of her small size. Mom said she was not only a sweet girl who got along with everyone, she would run with the big dogs, commanding over them and boy, did they listen!
Boo adored her daily walks to Pemaquid Point Lighthouse Park along Loop Road, especially the stops at the gatehouse, receiving treats from Mary and other staff. She loved Sammie, Michele and Tom’s daughters’ dog, who was known as her true mentor; teaching her everything she knew.
Boo had this amazing green burrow bed. She would curl up in it, making comfortable an art form. I heard that if you looked up “comfortable” in a dictionary, there would be a photo of her in that bed.
She especially loved getting Tom and Michele up every day at 6:30 a.m. (I like getting my folks up then, too.) Boo sounded like a very smart and forward-thinking girl.
Most everyone who met Boo liked her immediately. She could be a little shy but friendly. She was a determined girl who let nothing get in the way of her walks along the ocean, even if she wasn’t feeling her greatest. Boo was so loved and cherished. She loved life, every bit of it. She left an indelible mark with her many friends at Meadowsweet Inn who miss her terribly, her family who feel such a heavy loss, and Hank.
You were loved so much sweet girl. There is a saying my mom loves: “Dogs come to us without wings, so we won’t know they are angels.” I surely believe this to be true.
Hugs to all, your friend Henry.
If you would like for me to write a dedication to a pet you have lost, you can email my hooman at bassai213@yahoo.com.
