Notable Canine Characters

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People are not the only ones that have enjoyed lazing carefree in the sun on Comfort Island. Topper and other celebrated dogs have been frequent and often long-term visitors in addition to the Clark family members.
Just about every dog that has come to Comfort Island even for a brief visit has become acquainted with the beach. The beach offers a spot where a dog can wade in for a drink, advance a little further to cool off on a hot day or take a swim with a safe place to get out afterwards. I have never heard of or seen a dog try to swim to shore or another island because the distance is considerable and the current is strong near the island with the exception of the area fronting the beach. The younger pooches unabashedly frolic on the large lawns and thrive on being allowed to run loose. There is no dogcatcher on Comfort Island and leash laws don’t apply.
It takes a bit of training to convince a new arrival that chasing ducks is a dangerous folly. We watch closely to be sure a novice avoids falling in the river in places where it is hard to get out, and sometimes it is an instructive experience if they do fall in and sample their predicament before being pulled out and returned to safety. So far we have had many dogs enjoy the venue without any tragedies.
We’ve only had one neighbor throughout most of the years, and there is a considerable buffer between the two main houses on the four-acre island. Their dogs and our dogs have never become a nuisance.
The first dog was Cap Thomson’s “rent-a-dog” dating back to the 1880s. I met Cap Thomson in his mid-eighties. He boasted, seventy years after the fact, about renting his dog to Great Grandfather Clark. Cap demonstrated the value of industry, diligence and just plain hard work. U...

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...s. He had a sixth sense about when to head back to the car. He’d jump back through the open window and rest up for his next outing. From my perspective he was quite a dog. It was during that irresponsible period of my life, which some people say never ended. It was a stretch of time when my list of daily chores and obligations sometimes got lost.
Hal closely resembled “Lassie” of television fame. I recall little kids whispering to one another saying things like, “That’s Lassie.” He was a devoted companion throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. As I look back on it now, I probably doted on Hal as much as Dad doted on Topper. I often told Hal in a tone befitting royalty, “You are some dog.”
I knew Hal had reached the gates of the “happy hunting ground” when he became so arthritic that he ceased relishing his daily walks, and so it was that he passed away at thirteen.

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