The saddest day of all is the day a dog dies.
Life, once happy,
Now overflows with endless grief!
Where once resided happiness, is now a void.
How deeply it darkens the rooms where he once was
He can no longer be seen!
May his spirit comfort you alone in the night
When you recall the time together shared
For they are all you have now – he’s gone!
May your happy memories comfort you in time
As his accomplishments make you proud.
They will bring you joy.
When you look up to the heavens
May you see his outline in the stars ~ Oh wandering spirit
On your heavenly course…
Lorene Connolly
April 6, 2006
Senior Dog
Posted on BorzoiNews, April 30, 2005, in response to a discussion about senior dogs in the kennel.
We are too new in this breed to have any senior borzoi. I am sure our day will come, with all of the challenges that come with it. We do have one resident senior, and if I may bend the rules just a bit, I would like to say a few words about her. She is my black female Lab, Ebony. I took Ebony out of a shelter in Montrose, PA one day and brought her home with me. I never had a big dog before. All my previous dogs had been toys or small terriers. Yes, I acted on an impulse. This was my big leap into the world of larger dogs, enabling me to find my way to borzoi.
Shortly after getting Ebony, I remember thinking I wanted a companion dog for her. We knew Joseph Lara, who sold us our first borzoi, Lara’s River of Dreams “Casanova”, and he was supposed to be the second dog. We were enchanted by our borzoi and others followed. Majenkir My Ksar Mikhailovna “Mikhailya” followed shortly after when we became seriously interested in showing. Although Ebony graciously greeted each new companion, they kept to themselves more than her, and she remained a solo dog. Then, circumstances changed again when we added two new borzoi puppies, Blyss Paris Lights of Lido “Paris”, and Raynbo Opalesque of Blyss “Opal”. With each puppy’s arrival, Ebony came alive with interest and happiness, and a new personality emerged. She made them hers and guards them fiercely.
Ebony is only doing what comes naturally to her. When I first saw her at the shelter, I thought something was wrong but I could not put my finger on it. I was told she had whelped five litters before being put in the shelter and had just weaned the last one. It touched my heart to see her in the condition she was in so I took her out of there. She has been all that I would have ever asked of her and more. But who would have ever thought that an old Lab would love and look after borzoi pups? I thought she deserved a special mention for sharing her home, then taking such good care of the borzoi pups, too.
Lorene Connolly
Blyss Kennels
Mountainside, NJ
April 30, 2005
Casanova’s Tribute
Casanova was our first Borzoi. We owe our friend, Joseph Lara, an enormous debt for entrusting this beautiful dog to us. Joseph was a good teacher and mentor to us, and with his guidance, we debuted with Casanova in the ring two years ago at this very show. We continued to show him for about one year but Casanova seemed unhappy in the ring and never seemed to win. After a break of several months, we took him to a cluster of shows in North Carolina where Lee Pryor handled him, but the outcome was the same. Upon returning from North Carolina, he became gravely ill. We decided he would be a happier dog as a pet.
In the meantime, we realized we loved the breed. Other borzoi joined our family and we established Blyss Kennels at our new home. We bought a van and began to travel with our dogs visiting relatives out of state and taking them along on our vacations. At first, Casanova hated it. He had a way of making himself sound like a herd of stampeding elephants, and we listened to this for mile after mile. Then one day, it stopped. Although he was always a gentleman, at first, he did not let strangers pet him. Gradually, this has changed, and today, he lets people whom he does not know pet him. Now he is happy to make new friends and even walks up to strangers to be petted.
We thought he would enjoy seeing everyone again today at the Specialty of the Borzoi Club of Greater New York where he made his debut two years ago. He sends his love to Joseph Lara, and says hello to all the friends he has made since coming to our home, Blyss Kennels, where he is so dearly loved.
Lorene Connolly and Bob Dwyer
Blyss Kennels
Mountainside, NJ
April 19, 2005