Cavalier Argos,
a Man's best companion
"Here lies Dash, the favorite spaniel of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, by whose command this memorial was erected. He died on the 20th December 1840 in his ninth year. His attachment was without selfishness, his playfulness without malice, his fidelity without deceit. Reader, if you would live beloved and die regretted, profit by the example of Dash.”
IN MEMORIAM OF FRIENDS
My good friend Rocky, a French Papillon
Rocky was born the 26th January 2007 but saddly passed away assisted on Monday the 3rd July 2023;
he was only in his 17 year of life.
Bailey of Long Island, NY
The brave and handsome Bailey, my friend from New York, a day after his heart surgery in Japan; he greatly helped us to prepare for mine.
[photo by Dr Madeline Martinez, 26th July 2017]
Harvey
by Photographer Marcus TATE
Breakfast with Friends,
Harvey and Morgan had died
[clockwise: Evie, the Toy Puddle; Morgan, the Dachshund; Harvey the English
Cooker Spaniel and I, Argos, a British Cavalier
05 May 2016 after casting our votes to elect a new Mayor of London and Assembly
representatives]
Lily & Ernie, Belgian Griffons with Cavalier Bella.
Saddly Ernie and later Lily have passed away
My friends in Hampstead Village, Summer 2013
The passing of our beloved friend ARGOS
"Then almighty Juno, pitying her long agony and painful dying, sent Iris down from heaven to release her struggling soul from the prison of her flesh"
Virgil's Aeneid
London, this Saturday the 31st December 2022
With deep sorrow I have to inform that my beloved Argos passed away.
Argos was at home with his two human companions, my friend Nicolas and me, starting the 23rd day of the 8th month of his 15th year of life when his heart stop beating.
Nicolas and Argos were bound by a strong friendship, Argos looking over our friend all days long.
The past 15 years Argos has been the epicentre of my life, my Sun and my Moon, and every beautiful thing that deserves tears...
Since last Summer, the health of Argos deteriorated significantly, thus I have been watching over him night and day without rest; both of us spending the nights on the daybed of the ground floor library, as Argos needed frequent walks to the garden to urinate due to diuretics prescribed to treat his illness.
The last few days Argos, who was passionate about his meals, did not want to eat, he could only drink. Somehow I managed to serve him his many medicines dissolved in water, via a syringe, and very little food diluted in lactose free milk that he used to like.
On Thursday the 15th after consulting his French cardiologists online, two kind female Vets – Yoorana and Emiliane- came to examine Argos at home at 11pm. They were about to inject him some morphine to reduce an abdominal pain when, a few minutes past midnight, the heart of Argos suddenly stop beating. Argos was in my arms, our friend Nicolas was giving him oxygen and caressing his head.
Now I also suffer from regrets of not knowing at times to respond correctly to the needs of Argos, to his expectations from me: his everyday companion... The lack of sleep made my brain slow and my movements clumsy... If only I had taken him to his Vet at the start of the week, would he still be alive?
Yet I believe that Argos was telling us that his soul was eager to break free from his body, as the body has became a prison due to genetic and degenerative illnesses (please watch the 2008 documentary by the BBC in this website) and the old age...
Since then we have been mourning in tears the passing of our best friend Argos, our hearts pierced by an incessant pain. His poignant absence is and will be every where, every day for the rest of our lives...
That fateful Friday afternoon we managed to take care of the last rites, personally: cremating his body and bringing home the ashes of Argos in an urn. This urn is now in the library, next to the beautiful photo of the 3 of us with Atsuko, a Japanese friend in our Yokohama flat, in the Spring 2018, and the portrait of Argos by our neighbour Kiyomi; honoured by the constant light of a burning candle. A digital screen in this improvised altar projects slowly hundreds of photos from Argos...
My consolation is the hope that the loving soul of Argos has been welcomed by Homer, by Socrates, by Odysseus and his faithful dog ... in their immortal Isle of the Blessed; and that my ashes will rejoin his ashes to be scattered together in a few places where we had enjoyed wonderful moments during the past 15 years.
In memory of Argos, I wish each humane reader of these words: health & joy in the years ahead.
Miguel-Angel Meizoso
Argos with his friend Nicolas, at the Sail Loft, by artist Gillian Burrows
[Spring 2019]
With my friend Maze in a park near our homes