In Memoriam: Gus

Long time readers of Gossips will remember my beloved dog William, who died in November 2014. William, who lived in Hudson for more than fifteen years, was a dog about town, enjoying long walks around Hudson both morning and evening. As a consequence of his frequent and regular presence on the streets of Hudson, William had a lot of friends--both human and canine. Over the years, before and after his own death, William's dog friends--Needles, Lucy, Quinn, Henry, Allegra--have passed on. Recently, I learned of the death of William's last surviving canine friend, Gus.

Gus at Olana

Gus was the most gentle and patient of dogs. My favorite personal memory of him illustrates this. I was on a morning walk with my dog Joey a few months after I had adopted him, and as we approached Gus's house, I saw him walk from the backyard to the front of the house, climb the steps to the front door, and sit there, patiently waiting. He didn't bark or scratch on the door. He just waited, clearly trusting that someone would eventually let him in. 

Because I didn't want Joey to bark at Gus, as is his wont, we crossed the street, leaving Gus sitting on his front porch, but when we got home, I called Gus's human to make certain Gus was safe. I was told this happened often. Gus would be let out into the backyard, and sometimes it was forgotten that he was out there. When this happened, and waiting at the backdoor to be let back in didn't work, Gus would go around to the front door and wait there. In any event, by the time Joey and I had walked the block and a half from his house to ours, Gus was safely back in his house.

Farewell, sweet Gus. You were a very good dog.
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