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Remembering our Friends
Rokka
Rokka von Vavrik, 13.5 human-years-old, 95 dog-years-old, (and 100+ adventure-years-old), passed away Saturday, June 25, 2011, at his lifelong home after a short battle with heart disease, and from old age. He gave so much love that his heart ran out of beats... Rokka enjoyed a long life of Alaskan adventure. He was an avid backpacker, hiker, runner, camper and berry picker. He enthusiastically joined in on biking, skiing and canoeing trips. He enjoyed chasing sticks and balls and campfire sparks. He worked as a therapy dog for most of his life, bringing joy and comfort to the aged and sick at Providence Extended Care, Horizon House and Serendipity Adult Daycare; and the youth of McLaughlin Youth Center, Covenant House and Clare House. He also taught dog care and safety at Anchor Lutheran School. A generous philanthropist, for many years Rokka donated his birthday gifts to less fortunate homeless dogs and cats of the Alaska SPCA during the holidays. This legacy will continue on. A memorial celebration will be held in September 2011. Light a candle and please keep this wonderful, gentle, loving creature in your thoughts. What a great dog!
Mojo
Many of you may have seen gentle giant MoJo in his cart, loyally following his beloved Shannon around. Mojo was one of seven Husky/Malamute/German Shepherd cross dogs rescued by Alaska SPCA in October, 2009. He was fostered by Adoption Center kennel tech Shannon Basner, and he and Shannon were devoted to each other. MoJo was diagnosed with degenerative myelopathy, and over the course of his 10 months in Shannon’s loving care, he went from being a bit unsteady in the hind end, to losing all hind end mobility, so Shannon got him a specially made cart to get around. Unlike earlier stages of the disease, late stage myelopathy develops quickly, resulting in even more damage, including incontinence. (It is a blessing that this disease is not painful.) On August 11th, 2010, Shannon knew it was time to let her beloved Mojo cross the Rainbow Bridge. He did so peacefully, at home, among his familiar things and the people who loved him. MoJo’s courage and gentleness touched the lives of all who met him. And Shannon, so have you. Thank you for what you did for MoJo.
 
Darth Vader
Our
heart goes out to Tahlia Stewart who lost Darth Vader due to
FIP (Feline Infectious Peritonitis) at only 5 years of age. Tahlia's
"best friend" will live on in our hearts, and her generous donation in
Darth Vader's memory will help our future animals to find good homes.
Tahlia
wrote... "In memory of Darth Vader, who loved to give kisses, rub up to
guests that would visit the house, and wake me up at 5 a.m. to be fed.
He was a wonderful travel companion, seeing more of the United States
than most people, my best friend and nothing less than family. He'll be
missed greatly by those who knew him and especially by Malcom and me."
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If you would like a tribute to your AK SPCA friend included on this page, please email your story to adopt@alaskaspca.org with "In Memory" in the subject line.
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