Dilquin Standard Poodles

Quincy, my first Standard Poodle, was already five years old when he came to live with me. Prior to coming to live with me, Quincy, after a short show career, had been clipped down and left out at the prior owner’s farm for 7-8 months of the year. While at the farm, Quincy was left in the care of an older alcoholic relative. He was abused, often not fed, and left to fend for himself.

When Quincy arrived at his new home, he was suffering from chronic ear infections and atrophied facial muscles. When he was 8 years old, we did an ablation of one of his ears to try to relieve him of chronic ear pain and infection. The surgery did not solve his problems, so a year later I went south and had his entire inner ear removed.

It was the best thing I could have done. Within 2 months of the surgery, Quincy was healthier and more active than he had been in years. After seeing how much he improved after the surgery, I had so much respect for his strength of character and will. In hindsight, he must have been in a lot of pain and torment before the surgery, but he very rarely let on and was always ready to chase that ball one more time or walk just one more block before heading home.

Everyone who met this sweet gentle soul fell in love with him. He was wonderful with children and was a hit during visits to the local long term care facilities in our town where he was a Registered Therapy Dog. I remember driving with Quincy, my sister and her young son, Dakota, who was still in a car seat. Quincy was lying next to Dakota who was sharing Cheerios with him. My sister and I were talking and all of a sudden we heard a quiet whimper of pain. We jerked our heads back and saw that Dakota had grabbed Quincy's topknot and had pulled it so hard, you couldn't see Quincy's eyes anymore. Quincy never retaliated or tried to pull away for fear of hurting Dakota, he just let us know he needed some help.