Nellie was a loyal friend, and a trustworthy companion. She could induce feelings of admiration or exasperation. She would entertain and astound. Nellie had soft brown eyes that could win over almost anyone. She had a beautiful coat of gold, but which was pure white next to her skin, but this I only realised this once she had died. She was gentle and obedient and a magnet for children. With her long legs, my huntress was swift and graceful.

Over most of her life Nellie didn't wear a collar, or even a bandanna. What she wore was a tie. I always thought she looked silly with a collar, maybe because she had a small head and big chest. For a while I tried using a bandanna until I tired of having to replace it and her registration tags. Indeed, "go-find-your-bandanna" was a command she knew well. I decided one day to use an old work tie of mine, and tied it so that the knot would not slip, although it still hung loose about her neck. If her tie came off while she was playing she would bring it to me to put it back on. Seeing a dog with a tie often resulted in squeals of delight from children and pointed fingers from adults. During her life Nellie only ever lost one tie, and that was two weeks before she died.

Nellie started her life as a SPCA animal and was initially adopted by friends of mine from the Waiarapa. She came into my life when she was just over a year old after proving to be too much of a 'handful' for Penny and Danny, who also had three children aged under five. The final straw was her repeated escapades down the road and digging up the garden from boredom. In fact, just after I had agreed to take her, but before I had collected her, she was hit chasing a car after jumping the fence. Fortunately, the only damage was to one of her fangs, and to her desire to chase cars. That was lucky I guess.

I had moved to the country for work, and having always wanted another dog, the match seemed made in heaven. Indeed it was. I would go off to work and Nellie would play with the neighbour's kids while I was away. Her habit of wandering in search of food also kept her occupied when I wasn't there to keep an eye on her. Her favourite place was the supermarket down the road. They would throw the old pies into a Dumpster, which was just a little too tempting as far as Nellie was concerned.

Nellie was, from what I can gather, part Labrador and part Border Collie. Labradors are known for their good nature, retrieving capabilities, and ravenous appetites, while the Border Collie is known for their intelligence, mischievous nature, and good work ethic. Nellie had all of these traits, in spades!

One of the things I trained her to do was to retrieve the paper for me from the letterbox. Nellie took this regular morning ritual seriously. As soon as the paper was delivered she would go and collect it from the letterbox and take it back to her old laz-e-boy chair on the patio. After about a year I cancelled the paper delivery, but the paper still turned up intermittently over the space of a couple of months. I just assumed that the newspaper company had not removed me from their distribution list. Rising early one morning I saw my 80-year-old neighbour come out of his house, still in his dressing gown. He came across the road, up my driveway to Nellie's chair, reached around her and extracted the paper from under her. Tucking it under his arm he walked back across the street to his own house. Well, at least she had kept it warm and dry for him! Arthur never said a word to me about it, but it was around then that I decided to resume getting the paper delivered.

In just a few short years Nellie taught herself to do many things, some of which included how to rear up on her hind legs and tip over those 'dog-safe' rubbish bins. She was expert at slipping leads, chewing through ropes, and climbing or jumping fences. Nellie also knew where all the soft touches lived in the neighbourhood - people who would feed the Labrador within.

In the weekends we hunted together. Nellie's introduction to hunting was not exactly auspicious. When I first fired a gun next to her she darted behind the truck and had to be coaxed out. Nellie was scared of gunfire - unless of course I was actually shooting at game. If game was involved then all fears disappeared and she 'switched on'. During the six years I had her, she developed into a fine hunting companion with admirable stamina. When out rabbiting, she would find, point, and flush if commanded. She could retrieve all-day and then on through the night as well. She was always the first off the back of the truck when the guns went off, but would curl up and sleep at the drop of a hat when we stopped for a meal.

From memory, I estimate that she only ever lost two ducks. In both instances I was shooting over open water lagoons with a strong tide, heavy winds and approximately 30cm (12") waves. She found and flushed game where other dogs had passed it by, and once when the two of us came upon a covey of quail she was running around retrieving, while I was running around shooting. When it was all over, she took me to where she had nicely laid out the quail, side-by-side. She had the ability to find shot game in places nowhere near where my hunting companions or I thought it had come down. Nellie had good instincts and an even better nose.

Nellie was brave too. She was not afraid of water, wind, thorns, barbed wire, the cold, or the size of the game. I remember when once she tore her belly open on barbed wire as she jumped a fence. Just a few centimetres further over and she would have torn a main artery. I could have lost her then. But once the stiches came out she was right back into it. There was another time when we were out chasing rabbits in Central Otago. Nellie split her paws open so badly on the rocky ground that I had no choice but to leave her at the farm and carry on without her. She was not happy with me but she was in pain and couldn't walk, let alone run. I swear she sulked for the several weeks before opening weekend on the ducks.

I laugh when I remember her reaction to the first goose that I shot. The gun went off and on command she ran to the river's edge, swum and fast as she could, making the funny half bark, half groaning noise that she did, and found the bird. She circled it and looked back toward me as if saying, "you want me to bring THAT back! It's almost as big as I am!" But on command she did what she was told. After depositing the bird almost at my feet (Nellie didn't always manage the text-book retrieve to hand, but it was always good enough for me). She would climb back into the Mai Mai and into her bag, which protected her from the cold conditions, and curl up shivering at my feet. Her first swan is another story, but that won't be told here. Let's just say that she had a 'thing' about them. For some reason Nellie just didn't like swan and I could never, ever figure out why.

There have been times in my life when everything seemed to be in chaos, but Nellie was always my rock. She endured a custody battle that saw her shuttled by plane between cities every two months, and long periods of separation from me. During this time she asked for nothing other than my care and love, as only the faithful dog can do. The shame of it was that just as my life settled into some normality, and I was assured to keeping her full time, I lost her for good.

Nellie was mistakenly and tragically killed over the Easter break of 2002. A few of us were out helping a farmer clear up rabbits, but in the process Nellie became the casualty. She was killed by a single gunshot and by pellets that were not meant to kill an animal as large as her. This fact is what still makes me shake my head in disbelief. I guess this time was making up for all the other near misses during her life. I heard her cry as she went down and I got to her within seconds. She died in my arms. My Nellie did not get to grow old and weary. She died doing what she loved doing, and doing it to the max.

Nellie, I think of you every day, and I still miss you terribly. You were the best friend a man could ever hope to have. When I hunt, I still carry your ashes in my pack, your memories in my heart and your spirit at my side.

Until we meet again.

This photo was taken 1 week before Nellie died. She had just had a bath, and was wearing her new Bugs Bunny tie after losing the last one. Nellie was cremated, tie on and wrapped in my Swandri, in Christchurch, New Zealand on the 2nd of April 2002. Our new dog, Sophie, was born on that same day and at Christmas, aged 9 months unearthed Nellie's lost tie from the garden. This is now kept with Nellie's ashes.