We love to travel, but most of all I guess, we love to dream of traveling. We spend a lot of our time on the Internet researching various areas of the country, exploring sites of interest and the accommodations offered there.

We have a little Beagle who is now our travel mate and special considerations have to be made for Winnie. She comes first in all our travel plans. If places don't accept dogs, we just don't go there.

We used to board our pets when we took trips, but we don't do that anymore. Last fall we took a 10-day vacation in the beautiful Ozark Mountains of Arkansas. We had a most delightful time, relishing in the ever changing colors and falling leaves of Fall. We stayed in a log cabin, heard some great Bluegrass music and saw some of the famous Elk near Jasper.

The day we returned home, however, brought us squarely back to Earth. We had another little companion whose name was Brownie. Brownie had been with me for nine years. A little chocolate Minature Pinscher that made every step I took. She slept in bed with us at night, cuddling and snoring and finally settling in with her head on a pillow. She made us laugh alot. She brought us nothing but constant joy.

In the last year she developed diabetes. We gave her two injections of insulin daily and monitored her condition closely. Everyone at the vet's office, the vet himself and all his helpers, loved Brownie too. They seemed to look forward to her regular visits.

The day we returned home from our Arkansas trip in November, we made arrangements to pick up Winnie and Brownie at the clinic where they had been boarded. Shortly before we were to pick them up, we got a frantic call from the young kennel assistant telling us that Brownie had gone into a diabetic seizure and that we should come to the clinic immediately. When we got there, it was obvious that it would be best to put Brownie down. But we didn't give up on her. The vet arrived and we worked on her for some time, forcing fluids, and testing blood sugar levels, etc. She got no better. After about an hour of constant trying, we finally made the decision to let little Brownie go in peace.

I guess this is why we aren't going to be boarding our pets anymore. The kennel did not do anything wrong, or contribute in any way to what happened to Brownie. We just wish we had been able to spend those last days with her. Of course she hasn't gone far. She still resides in our hearts.

We now have an addition to our family - Cobey, a miniature pinscher. He is now 10 months old and since he is still a puppy, he keeps us hopping! He and Winnie, our beagle, love each other and play great together!