Starr Da Dogg, March 17, 2009 - December 9, 2019
In September 2009, 6-month-old Starr Da Dogg rescued Dan and Nancy from
a life filled with cats! On December 9, 2019, she left behind the
Mahoney clowder to cross the Rainbow Bridge.
In the 10-plus years in between, Starr grew from a skinny shelter puppy
into a loved and loving big girl, BFF to multiple cats and biggest
“baby” in the Mahoney household.
Starr was a life-long Midwesterner, presumably born in the Des Moines,
Iowa, area before being adopted out of the humane society shelter there.
Just 4 months later, she founded StarrLine.com, producer of coats for
canine fashionistas who want couture fleece wear. As chief executive
dog, she directed the purchasing of materials for the locally-made
coats, while assigning the design and production to the chief executive
human.
She wrote in her blog that she founded StarrLine.com because she
couldn’t find a suitable coat that fit her properly.
As a puppy, Starr developed a fondness for snow, a good trait for a gal
living in central Iowa. Although half Labrador Retriever (and Rhodesian Ridgeback) she wasn’t much for playing in water at this stage of her
life. But she loved standing on the edge of the plastic kiddie pool to
empty it then swinging it back and forth like one of her stuffed toys.
And she loved stuffed toys, especially those with squeakers! With
surgical precision she opened each toy to extract the squeaker, leaving
soggy stuffing and coverings in her wake for the humans to pick up from
where she dropped them in the house in Newton.
It was in Iowa that her deference to cats became obvious. Once at the
top of the stairs she whined, calling to her humans for help. She was
encircled by the five clowder members, any one of whom she could have
stepped over or pushed aside with a big paw. Instead, she awaited help
from the humans.
The entire family moved to northern Illinois soon thereafter, landing in Bolingbrook. It was here that the Da Dogg tag became part of her name,
in honor of the Chicago Bears.
Starr continued her business endeavors, expanding the company to
pet-themed items like scarves and blankets, etc., offering them on Etsy, through personal contacts and at craft fairs. It was during this period
that she began developing a simple but effective coat sizing method that steered most of the production to custom work.
Starr also developed an appreciation for nature, enjoying the many parks
in the Bolingbrook system. In the park nearest her home she began to see
the fun of water play — or maybe it was the ducks she was interested in
— and discovered she could wade into the small lakes to splash and cool
off. She also joined her humans as they took part in the county forest district’s trails programs, notching trips to most of the sites except
those few restricted to humans only.
Over the years she also learned that a row or circle of cats no longer
limited her movement, especially if said cats were between her and the
back door. It was quite a surprise to the cats when she figured that
out! In the process, Starr learned much about the ways of humans and
cats, enjoying trips to PetSmart with the former and inclusion as a
honorary member of the Feline World Order with the latter.
Starr was an educated dog, attending puppy school in both Newton and Bolingbrook. She was strong on the basics — when she chose to follow instructions! She did learn that few people she met could resist her big
brown eyes outlined in black fur that stood out against her golden brown
fur.
She is survived by her Momma, Nancy, and her Poppa, Dan; her feline
fursibs Sammy, Ranger, Francesca, Benni, Freddy and Milton; and her
special lifelong friend, Mr. Bear, who never lost his squeaker to her
loving ministrations. Starr has left a void in our hearts — and on the
bed and couch!
A donation in her memory was made by her doctor to the Missouri
Veterinary College.
Starr and her fursibs who have already crossed the Rainbow Bridge visit
the Mahoney household every now and then to check up on things. Those
left behind are reassured to know the furkids there suffer no pain or
sorrow, but look forward to when all are reunited in peace and joy.
--
Community cats
Walk of Remembrance:
http://www.clowdercat.org/walk/walkofremembranz.html
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