Brendan

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	Nickols Dark Star Rising
	4/15/89 to 5/23/01
	Brendan was my sweet, sensitive boy. He loved everyone he met, and had a mothering instinct that rivaled any of my females. He would wait until the girls had left their puppies unattended, then he would sneak in the whelping box to care for the little ones. One of my favorite memories is of a day that I kept looking for Brendan. When I finally spotted him lying behind the barn, I called him to come to me and he refused to obey. Knowing this behavior was unusual, I hurried to his side thinking he might be injured. To my amusement, I saw three tiny kittens sleeping peacefully, nestled against Brendan's side. He hadn't wanted to wake his "babies".
	He wasn't exactly fond of dog shows. He hated the fussiness of Conformation, and his attitude towards Obedience was "I know all these stupid exercises by heart, so why do I have to keep doing this over and over?". I finally decided to let him forget about dog shows and just be my "Brendie Boy".
	He was a wonderful traveling companion too. After my close friends suffered the loss of their beloved Collie, they would "borrow" Brendan to accompany them on trips, until they felt ready to commit to another Collie pup. I used to complain that Brendan took more vacations than I did.
	In his later years, Brendan suffered a leg injury that required the fusing of his upper carpal to the radius resulting in an immobile ankle joint. He refused to let it slow him down, and enjoyed life to the fullest, until a minor fall caused a paralyzing spine injury. With our vet's assistance, he passed peacefully over to the Rainbow Bridge, where I'm sure he is tending to all the little ones who need a bit of "mothering".