![\"Paddy\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/IMG_0451-e1408688038605.jpg?resize=262%2C350\")
<\/a><\/p>\nHere’s the thing, Paddy was a wonderful companion because of how he approached the world: fearlessly (except for fireworks), optimistically, mindfully, and compassionately. Paddy loved everything and everyone, and expressed it no matter what. He never dwelt, moped, pouted or sulked. Even when he was in pain or ill, his focus was on the people around him, rather than how he felt. Paddy was an awesome mentor.<\/p>\n
OK, I know its easy to anthropomorphise. Obviously, Paddy wasn’t human, and was bound within the cognitive limitations of being a dog. Nevertheless, he demonstrated that, despite not having the large cognitive apparatus available to you or me, he could empathise, take direct action to comfort those around him, and focus on another’s needs in preference to his own. That’s a pretty big deal for a human, let alone a small dog.<\/p>\n
I grew up with dogs, but from the time I left home at 17, I became dogless. For the next 20 years, I desperately wanted to have a dog in my life again, but I was never anywhere for long enough (including moving countries three times). When I met my wife seven years ago, I also got to meet and be a part of Paddy’s life – and all of a sudden doggyness was thrust upon me, in the form of seven and a half kilos of irrepressible terrier. I’d always been a little prejudiced toward small dogs, but Paddy was simply a big dog in a small body. Everything he did seemed bigger than his small body should have allowed.<\/p>\n
From the moment I met him, Paddy began to teach me. He pointed out (on an extremely regular basis) that I took myself far too seriously; a\u00a0point he\u00a0demonstrated by waiting until I was grumpy or sulking, and then doing something ridiculous (like licking a cushion or taking one of his patented pratfalls) to force me back into the moment. He was remarkably good at\u00a0making me laugh, especially when I was full of myself or stuck in my own head. Paddy also taught me to savour the moment, that there was always time (no matter how busy I thought I was) to stop and smell the roses (or, in his case, the shit – something he was extremely fond of eating as well (I even learnt a new word: coprophagia) – we never learnt to see eye to eye on that one). Most importantly, Paddy taught me that even though it’s easy to pay too much attention to your own feelings (especially the devouring ones like self-pity, frustration, anger, or sadness), it’s also possible to pay attention to the people who are important to you, despite the fact that\u00a0you might be in pain.<\/p>\n
Paddy was always more patient than I was. He knew (despite the fact that I might have thought it was important that he take the piss he’d been telling me he needed for the last 15 minutes) that the process was so much more important than the outcome. For him, finding the right place to pee was so much more important than the actual peeing – and he never once let external conditions convince him otherwise (including snow, the fact that it was 3am, or my insistence). I realise with belated hindsight that he was patiently trying to teach me an important lesson (one that I still struggle with): what you do is less important than how you do it. If you’re going to do something, for dog’s sake, do it well, pay attention, and make sure you get the most out of it.<\/p>\n
Paddy’s gift was ability to be mindful no matter what he was doing, or what was going on. Distraction wasn’t an issue for him once he’d decided to do something – be it licking the couch, eating poo, chasing rabbits, or not giving a tennis ball back. As far as he was concerned, each of these activities required his commitment, his patience, and his fidelity. They were not to be rushed, nor were they to be watered down by the whims of those around him. His talents as a “stunt Russell” were something he took great pride in, and he was constantly practising and evolving his art. Not content have mastered the pratfall, he also managed regular somersaults, 360-degree spins, and stair plummets, always perfectly timed and nonchalantly designed to appear spontaneous (we were always sure he’d been planning and practising for weeks beforehand though).<\/p>\n
Like all of us, Paddy wasn’t perfect. He hated fireworks, he despised being by himself\u00a0(and would shout incessantly whenever he was left on his own), and he had an irrational dislike of motorbikes and men wearing motorbike helmets. But he rocked his neuroses. He wore them proudly and never whined about his shortcomings. He made sure that his issues were contained to the situations in which they were merited, and didn’t let them spill over into other parts of his life. Consequently, he never\u00a0complained, held a grudge, or acted out of character. There’s a real nobility in the ability to own your shortcomings: he was awesome even when he wasn’t.<\/p>\n
Paddy took the time to teach me all of these things despite the fact that his heart already belonged to another. He was steadfastly and totally there for my wife, and loved her dramatically. He was always there when she needed him, and she loved him fiercely. Her pain at his passing is the one thing he would have tried his little heart out to prevent. So despite his already busy schedule loving her, Paddy took time out to love me too, and to teach me, patiently and over and over again, that it wasn’t and isn’t all about me.<\/p>\n
By the time of his passing, Paddy was very old. He was in a lot of pain from his arthritis, could no longer move at anything beyond a shuffle, and even found it hard to eat (something that was hard to see because food was his greatest passion). Despite all of this pain, he still did everything he could to show his love for us, and to be (simply) awesome. I hope that, when I get to be as old and run down as he was, I can still focus on those around me.<\/p>\n
Paddy, you’re desperately missed. You were an inspiration, you were my teacher and my mentor, and our touchstone.<\/p>\n
RIP.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Today’s post is a little different: it’s to celebrate the life a wonderful little Jack Russell by the name of Paddy. Paddy was my wife’s constant companion for 17 years, and mine for the last seven. Paddy was put to sleep on Friday after a Read More …<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":809,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"The Eclectic Moose has a new blog post! Dogs are awesome... http:\/\/wp.me\/p2ys79-d2","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[1,4],"tags":[23,95,12,414,413],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/IMG_0451-e1408688038605.jpg?fit=262%2C350&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":491,"url":"https:\/\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/2013\/04\/01\/needed-a-sense-of-humour\/","url_meta":{"origin":808,"position":0},"title":"Needed: A sense of humour…","date":"01\/04\/2013","format":false,"excerpt":"It's been brought to my attention that I have a tendency toward doom and gloom pronouncements, and it's very easy to fall into a rhythm of writing about how crap we are as human beings. So\u00a0I thought I'd do something a little lighter today. But now that I think about\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/03\/Laughing-businessman-e1377301981716.jpg?fit=350%2C233&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":577,"url":"https:\/\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/2013\/06\/18\/the-zen-of-butt-sniffing-what-we-can-learn-about-psychological-wellbeing-from-dogs\/","url_meta":{"origin":808,"position":1},"title":"The Zen of butt-sniffing: What we can learn about psychological wellbeing from dogs…","date":"18\/06\/2013","format":false,"excerpt":"First up, I'm on holidays at the moment but am going to try to update the blog as often as possible (it might not be quite weekly) - will do my best! Today, I wanted to write about a topic near to my heart: dogs. Don't worry, I'm not going\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/Image-e1372839776271.jpg?fit=320%2C240&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":886,"url":"https:\/\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/2015\/10\/05\/why-dogs-are-happier-than-you-understanding-primary-and-secondary-emotions\/","url_meta":{"origin":808,"position":2},"title":"Why dogs are happier than you: Understanding primary and secondary emotions…","date":"05\/10\/2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Dogs experience\u00a0an internal world that is substantially different from the one you and I inhabit. For dogs, the world is comprised of primary experiences, largely undiluted by the cognitions (including worry) and\u00a0secondary emotions that\u00a0we humans constantly bathe ourselves in. Let me elaborate. There's a great Buddhist maxim that defines the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Happy-dog-e1429498895524.jpg?fit=350%2C263&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":232,"url":"https:\/\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/2012\/11\/19\/the-blankie-as-metaphor-lessons-from-a-spaniel\/","url_meta":{"origin":808,"position":3},"title":"The ‘Blankie’ as Metaphor: Lessons from a Spaniel","date":"19\/11\/2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I'd like to introduce you to Moose. Moose is a four year-old Springer Spaniel who is fixated on his blankie. He also has a stuffed sheep which, along with his blankie, he uses to regulate his emotions. This fascinates me. So this week I'd like to write about the 'blankies'\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/IMG_0294-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":630,"url":"https:\/\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/2013\/07\/12\/why-im-choosing-to-go-vegetarian\/","url_meta":{"origin":808,"position":4},"title":"Why I’m choosing to go vegetarian…","date":"12\/07\/2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm back. Apologies for the lack of entry last week - a combination of jet lag and a cold made sure that didn't happen. Today, I wanted to write about something that's been on my mind for a while. Before travelling for a month, my wife and I decided that,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/image1-e1373658712532.jpg?fit=400%2C266&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":328,"url":"https:\/\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/2012\/12\/17\/its-not-the-thought-that-counts-its-the-present\/","url_meta":{"origin":808,"position":5},"title":"It’s not the thought that counts, it’s the present","date":"17\/12\/2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Christmas is around the corner.\u00a0For something that used to be so awesome as a kid it's amazing that, for many people, Christmas isn't fun at all - it's a stress-filled hell, stuffed with nightmares... 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![\"Paddy\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.eclectic-consult.com\/mooseblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/IMG_0451-e1408688038605.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n