With the holiday season upon us and the year winding down, we’re casting a look back at the most notable, newsworthy, and lovable dogs we wrote about on Dogster in 2014. It’s a little tribute we like to call the 12 Dogs of Christmas — and today we remember our top dog of the year.
1. Monkie the one-eyed Pug
Monkie the Pug was the most heartbreaking Monday Miracle we featured on Dogster this year.
She was left overnight in a box outside of the Charlottesville-Albemarle SPCA and had to have her right eye (and two cancerous tumors) removed in an initial operation, but eventually the 10-year-old pooch found her forever home with Jeanette Upright. Just over a year into her new life, though, this former breeder Pug passed away from cancer of the heart. But as Monkie’s Facebook page puts it, “In 54 weeks, I lived more with my mum than I did in 10 years.”
Three months on from her passing, Monkie now posts missives from the other side of the Rainbow Bridge. A recent Facebook update suggests that she’s comfortable in her new realm, as she describes it as “warm and sunny … not too warm, just right.” She adds that the food options are pretty sweet, too, as heaven’s residents “can do and eat anything we want at any time.”
Monkie also revealed that her mom is still coming across small reminders of her in everyday life: “Mum realized dat I left my mark on de yarn. She keeps finding de hairs I left behind. It makes her smile everything she finds one!”
For her part, Monkie’s mom has been posting regular remembrances and insights to her Facebook page. At one point she mused on feelings of guilt that can arise when a beloved pet passes. “I thought a lot today about the way she wanted the top of [her] chest rubbed,” she wrote. “We all assumed that she just liked getting touched there. Now, I know it was because her heart and chest were hurting and rubbing it gave her some relief.”
Other times, she reminisces over the adventures she had with Monkie, talking about the times the Pug would take on the role of co-pilot in the car or when they’d enjoy tongue-out Tuesdays together.
Asked how she looks back on her time with Monkie, Jeanette took time out from her holiday preparations to tell Dogster, “It was an honor to be her mum. Monkie may not be here physically, but she is still here. She lives through her [Facebook] page and all the seniors that have been adopted since getting to know her.”
Continuing to talk about the way she’s been keeping Monkie’s spirit alive, Jeanette added, “Since Monkie’s passing, her legacy now includes the Pink Paw Project, where I make blankets for pups and donate the funds to those dealing with emergency medical situations. Even after I am gone, Monkie will forever live on. She was unique, and I was blessed to have the time I did with her.”
Rest in peace, little Pug.
Enjoy the other 12 Dogs of Christmas:
- 12. Little Miss Lexi
- 11. Jonny Justice
- 10. Winter the Blind Pitt Bull
- 9. Jimmy Choo the Instagram Sensation
- 8. London the Two-Legged Pit Bull
- 7. Uncle Samsung
- 6. Stan the Puppy Mill Survivor
- 5. Jefferson the World Cup Dog
- 4. Braveheart the Pittie, Rescued from a Storage Unit
- 3. Roo, Tripod Pit Bull Who Escaped Dog Fighting
- 2. Chica-Chan the Blind Chihuahua
- 1. Monkie the One-Eye Pug
About Phillip Mlynar: The self-appointed world’s foremost expert on rappers’ cats. When not penning posts on rap music, he can be found building DIY cat towers for his adopted domestic shorthair, Mimosa, and collecting Le Creuset cookware (in red). He has also invented cat sushi, but it’s not quite what you think it is.
