Henry "Paul Rudd" Bork

Trevor and I are unhappy to have to break the news that Henry, the best dog in the world, passed away on March 8, 2012.
This past May, Henry developed cancer, and although he beat it and got better, his health was never quite the same. He was diagnosed with a bowel disease this winter and, after a couple of months of losing weight and inconsistent eating, his health deteriorated further.

We didn't write about this immediately because, frankly, it was too hard. But over the summer we didn't tell many people about Henry's cancer, and that didn't feel right, either; so we figured we'd let everyone know and show some happy images of Henry doing some of his favorite things.

Henry especially liked it when he got to get dressed up. Although Trevor liked to believe that Henry didn't like this, I knew the truth. Does this look like the face of a dog who didn't like to be dressed up? Please.

Just doing a bit of reading.

What's up, player?

Yes, I can do your taxes.

Does this make me look fat?

Shark Face!

Henry also liked to be outdoors, and he made a lot of trips to Door County with me and Trevor.

Hi.

No, I absolutely did not eat any snow. No way.

But, although Henry had boundless energy, he also liked to relax and enjoy the quiet moments.

With his cousin, Pepper

At Jim's cabin in the Door

After a giant Thanksgiving dinner with Adam

On a Tuesday...

Wednesday...

Thursday...

What do you mean I "won't fit"?

Henry was always happy. In fact, he got so happy that he developed "Happy Tail Syndrome" and we had to dock his poor tail into a nubbin. But that nubbin never stopped wagging and he was always trying to give everyone giant slurping smooches and looking to cuddle up with someone.

What is that, a camera? Can I kiss it?

Um, Maya, can I have that blue guy, please?

Happy Tail Before, Nubbin After

Smooch attack

Henry also liked art.

Well I like that sculpture, but this horse is quite nice, too.

These are part of my collection. Yes, you may photograph me with them.

Poster art is art, too.

And graffiti is some of my favorite. Irreverence is valuable.

And Henry was irreverent himself, too.

No, I won't look at the camera.

Comin attcha, man. Look out.

 But more than anything, Henry liked to pose for pictures. He was handsome and he knew it.

I realized, after going through the blog archives to look for some of my favorite pictures, that Henry made it into almost every single post I  have written over the past six years. So, even if you didn't know him in person, odds are that you have read about some of his hijinks. And if you did know him, you remember his Chewbacca like yawn, his giant head, and his wagging butt (and if you ever spent the night at our place you remember his tongue in your eye at six a.m.). We miss Henry more than anything, and there will never be another dog like him. Thanks for sharing him with us.