RYNCHANON SMOKE ON THE WATER OVER NIGHTWING

'SWEEP'  

Baronglen The Guardsman   x   Rynchanon Delta Lady

Sweep was born on April 26^th. 2001 and was the dog puppy Steve chose to be his first Irish Wolfhound.

He was brother to Zizi (Ch Rynchanon Cowboys N’ Kisses) and Mole, (Rynchanon Kiss From a Rose).

He was a giant of a dog, huge not just in size but in temperament and personality as well, and he adored Steve.

He enjoyed being shown and was starting to mature into a very handsome dog, taking the Reserve CC at Belfast Championship Show in 2003 at just seventeen months of age.

Tragically, his life ended in February 2004 when he was just twenty-two months old. He had a liver torsion, an extremely rare occurrence and an inoperable condition.  We lost him in the space of twenty-four hours. It was the saddest day of our lives. Steve was distraught and inconsolable but the events that followed have broadened our outlook on life (and death especially), immeasurably.

Sweep’s story is told in its entirety in ‘Over The Rainbow Bridge’. If you have ever wondered what happens to animals when they die perhaps you might think about reading it and the follow-up to it, ‘Much More From Over The Rainbow Bridge’. We think of these as Sweep’s books but they belong to everyone who has been brave enough to share their experiences through them and we know from the many letters, phone-calls and e-mails that we’ve received since the books have been published, that they have helped literally hundreds of people to cope with the aftermath of losing a cherished animal and given them hope to carry on when their lives have gone into freefall.

Lord of the mountains  But when will I grow into my ears?

I will just have to sit and wait!  Is my dinner ready yet?

Cool dude!            Nice pillow

Sofa's too small                    Sleep well sweet boy

This was the last picture taken of Sweep just before we lost him.

***

Fran Smith-King wrote this lovely poem especially for Steve -

Patiently waiting at the gate, my boy would look for me.

My daddy’s home he’d wag his tail, so happy we would be

He was such a handsome pup a dog to make me proud,

A gentle Irish Wolfhound who stood out from the crowd.

He thought he was a lap dog as he sat upon my knee,

He just didn’t realise how big he was you see.

Our lives were just so wonderful each day filled with such love

Until the angels made a vow to take him back above

My heart was cracked and broken as my hound he breathed his last

How could I face the future I was living in my past.

No one could really understand the pain that I went through

Until my boy came back to me and helped me start anew

He promised that he would return and I must wait once more

Till Rainbows shine above us and bring him to the door.

The day will dawn so soon I know and once again he’ll wait

Till daddy comes back home from work and opens up the gate.

For Steve

from Fran Smith-King