Zuri

When my beautiful thirteen-year-old dog Zuri died six months ago, I reacted like many a devoted owner does to their trusty companion's passing - as if I'd lost a member of the family. So when my wife, Maureen, suggested we fill the void with a portrait, we commissioned her friend and local artist Sylvia McConnell to paint one for me.

Zuri, a placid, highly affectionate Golden Retriever, with a host of fans both in the neighbourhood and at the local seniors' residence she visited every week, had two prominent features typical of her breed: a gorgeous golden coat and a happy countenance often anthropomorphized as a 'smiley face'!

Rob Burns