Figaro

Figaro September 28, 2011 - May 2, 2020 Figaro bounded into our lives at 2 months of age, a furry bundle of pure golden energy. He quickly became integral to our “pack,” and matured into a beautiful retriever with a light, curly coat, a goofy personality, and unwavering loyalty and dedication to his humans. His untimely departure, just eight years later, left us with a deep hole in our hearts and many wonderful memories. True to his breed, Figaro excelled as a retriever of his favorite objects, which he then moved to where he thought they should be. Figaro’s bed became a gathering place for missing socks, shoes, slippers, sandals, and boots (both human and dog varieties). He loved to forage in waste baskets for scraps of paper and wads of tissue, carrying them in his mouth until his nervous tail twitch exposed his misdeed. He regularly brought us “gifts” from the recycling bin; in his mouth a plastic ramen container looked like a buddhist monk’s begging bowl. He was especially fond of our son’s toys, and took great pleasure in “kidnapping” certain stuffed animals. Eventually even our son came to enjoy these antics. Although Figaro failed his TDI final exam (or perhaps it was his humans who failed), he earned his wings through daily therapy in our home. Among his many household responsibilities were his self-appointed roles as monitor for our son’s daily violin practice, and mediator between the musicians of the family when tempers flared. Figaro was an absolute terror in the water, quick to capsize a canoe and then frantically climb atop the boat’s former occupants as they attempted to swim ashore. He was equally adept at intervening between the would-be handyman and his tools. I would challenge any carpenter or plumber to complete their task with a dog’s head under the arm and dog’s nose in the face. We forgave him for any and all such incidents because of the emotional therapy he provided to us everyday. And on the day my wife lost consciousness due to a previously undiagnosed heart condition, it was Figaro who woke her up and stayed by her side until help arrived and she was rushed to the hospital. We are especially proud of Figaro’s participation in the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study (Hero #918), and grateful to the veterinarians who facilitated that process. We hope that the 8 years of data collected on Figaro will bring us closer to the day when magnificent dogs in their prime will no longer fall victim to hemangiosarcoma and other terrible cancers. Cancer may have taken Figaro from us, but his illness did not define him. Nor did it change his essential nature, even on his last day. Figaro never wavered from his purpose. We are so grateful for his time with us. In addition to the humans he left behind, Figaro will be missed by his canine companion, Chelsea.