Zulu
January 1996 - April 9, 2008
Zulu was a wonder dog. She was the best dog that I have ever known and loved. She was smart, loving, gentle and patient. She had a large family of people that loved and cared for her and she is greatly missed.
In 1996 Zulu was adopted from the Utah Humane Society, by Sara and Craig, my sister-in-law and her husband. Zulu was so happy to have been rescued and to have her own home and her own people. Sara and Craig treated Zulu with kindness and Zulu in return was eager to please.
Craig taught Zulu to play ball, and it became her favorite activity. Zulu even taught other dogs to play ball, by patiently showing them over and over again how it was done. Unfortunately, in the last year of Zulu's life, her hips hurt her, and she was unable to run after the ball.
I became well acquainted with Zulu when my family lived with Sara, Craig, Nancy and Walt, (my mother and father-in-law) for a year. My first son was one and a half years old at the time. He loved having dogs to live with. He named himself "Bucky the Dog", wore a collar, drank out of a dog dish, and played fetch with the dogs. Zulu was so gentle with him, I never worried about my son being around her.
Zulu became the extended family pet. Sara and Craig divorced and Zulu stayed with Sara's parents; Nancy and Walt. When Sara's parents moved into an apartment, Zulu went to live with Sara's sister Jessica. When Jessica, Nancy and Walt all moved to Maryland, Zulu went with. Eventually, Nancy and Walt felt that they couldn't care for Zulu as well as they wanted to and so in May of 2005 Zulu was put on an airplane and sent to live with my family.
My two sons, Nate and Max were so happy to have Zulu living with them. My husband Eric adored Zulu and was happy to have Zulu around. Zulu became my walking partner, we logged many hours of walking in Liberty Park.
At the end of her life, Zulu was having a difficult time with pain and a loss of mobility, but she never complained. She wanted to participate in life as much as she could. She still loved going on walks, even though just around the block was all she was able to do.
Zulu was a cherished member of our family and we think of her everyday. She is also fondly remembered by many human friends who also recognized that she was a very special creature.
