Devorguilla, a.k.a. Devie, our blue tick coon hound mix, died today, December 29, 2013. She was approximately thirteen years old, having been adopted as a young adult at the Capital Area Humane Society in January 2002. She is survived by little hound Hawise, cats Moonshine and Nightshade and people Alex, Lillian, and Rachel.
Despite our attempts at training, Devie was a headstrong troublemaker. She bayed at everyone who entered, stopping only when she was ready. Barking was how she related to other dogs and while we understood her noise to be playful, most other hounds cowered away from her. She surfed counters, scavenged floors, and ate anything possibly food-like. In her twelve years with the Tayse Baillieuls, she consumed the following in addition to regular meals: human birthday cakes, six packages of raisins to include packaging in one sitting, several bronze ring nails and the plywood they were attached to, boozy fruitcakes, chocolate truffles, a sheet pan of cookies, compost, a bag of flour, trash, and countless breakfasts, lunches, and dinners left unattended for a few seconds. Devie's stomach of steel allowed that these indiscretions were uncomfortable for her but didn't results in messes for her family beyond the missing food.
While she was difficult to live with, Devie was easy to love. Friends and neighbors who understand hounds carried on howling conversations with her. Many admired Dev's unflagging devotion to food, annoying as it was.
She was extremely gentle, especially around Lillian. Devie not only tolerated but seemed to enjoy being dressed up and always won 'cuteness contests', Lil's habit of dressing up pets and stuffed animals for fashion shows. Devie's coloring was beautiful and inspired our first business name, the Baying Hound. After losing an eye to persistent infection in 2010 she became even more striking.
We noticed Devie slowing down this autumn. When she stopped enjoying food, her one true love, this week, it was our signal that organ degeneration or cancer had progressed enough to severely affect her quality of life. We made the difficult choice of euthanasia. She was buried at home.
Rest in peace, Devorguilla. You will be missed.