In Memory of Chopper
Many of our loyal Brisbane customers would have met our dog Chopper over the years. Sadly, Chopper passed away on the 7th of May 2006. It was very sudden and without much warning. We thought that he was invincible - he seemed so fit and healthy. By the time the vet tried to operate on him to remove the large tumour on his spleen, he died. He was not quite 12 years old. He was very much part of the Perfect Potion team. He came to work every day - not that he did any work.
He was the keeper of the bins, regularly checking them to ensure no one threw food scraps into them - because if they did, Chopper would find them and ensure they were disposed of properly.
At lunch he would look at you with those big doggy eyes waiting for you to give him some food scraps. He usually got his way, however if you didn't give in to him he would give you an ear full of his barking!
He loved Christmas in the shops, he loved getting attention and pats from customers - when he got bored he would start eating raffia, unfortunately raffia does not digest that well, and it was always embarrassing the next day when I had to pull ½ metre or so of raffia from you know where!
He attended all the workshops that I taught in Brisbane, if anyone in the class had food in their bag he would find it, if they placed their glass of water on the floor he would drink from it - water always tasted better from a glass for Chopper.
He attended all the staff meetings and almost all the job interviews that I did. The "in" joke at Perfect Potion was that if you liked Chopper you would definitely get the job. Ann, our Financial Controller, told me that during her interview, Chopper decided to sit on her foot for the whole interview. She was not too sure what to do, so she put up with him.
He was a really good judge of character and yes I do think he did help me in the recruitment process. Kath, our previous Retail Operations Manager, was even luckier - she got what we ended up calling "some Chopper loving". That was usually a little embarrassing - if he liked you very much he often latched onto your leg and gave it a hump!
Most important of all - he was a gentle soul with attitude who loved to be around people - he filled our lives with so much joy and fun. He was not the most obedient dog, but what he lacked in obedience he made up for in character and personality. He never really understood that he was a dog.
He exuded a puppy like innocence right up to the very last minute -on his last day a stranger who had just met Chopper came up to us and said "he is a seriously cute dog".
We are all grateful that we had an opportunity to share our lives with such a special little dog.
Chopper we miss you so much.
Sal & Carolyn
Sal's favourite dog books
Red Dog by Louis de Bernieres
Red Dog is an all time classic and favourite. This story follows the amazing adventures of a red dog that travels throughout the outback regions of Western Australia and the people that he meets. This is truly an incredible story of friendship and about the important bonds that are formed between people and dogs.
Anyone with a dog will relate to this;
Tally cleaned his bowl conscientiously with his tongue, and then cleaned it again just to make sure. When there was definitely not one atom of food left in it, he strolled outside and lay down once more in the shade of the tree, his stomach feeling pleasantly stretched, and very soon he fell asleep.
Dog 37 by John Danalis
After reading this fantastic children's book I always became concerned after dropping Chopper off at the Kennel. If you ever did wonder what dogs get up to when you drop them off to the kennel, then this book is for you.
I have heard you calling in the night. A memoir by Thomas Healy.
This is a moving story about a character which I initially did not have any empathy for. He was constantly drunk and was an extremely violent person. This was until one day in a drunken stupor he buys a pup - whom he calls Martin. It then becomes a story of redemption and how Martin helps Thomas's find peace, love and a reason to live.
Marley and Me by John Grogan
I purchased this book a month before Chopper died. At the time I thought, this is so sad. I had no way of knowing that this book would help me come to terms with Chopper's loss. John's has now been turned into a movie.