School mourns death of mascot

Wyeth in Metric Dog costume. photo provided Sisters Elementary School was a sad place last week.

Students and staff said good-bye to a beloved mascot: Wyeth the Wonder Dog, Dog of the Future.

The approximately 10-year-old Australian Shepherd mix was a fixture at the school, where for years fourth-grade teacher David Hewitt included him in class activities.

"He started coming on 'pet day' and he was such a hit with the kids... I took to bringing him three or four days a week," Hewitt said.

It was a big privilege to have Wyeth around and the students behaved well so as to make sure he could keep coming.

"My rule was always 'if Wyeth is a distraction he has to stay home -- and you don't want to be responsible for that,'" Hewitt said.

The dog was a real morale booster for kids.

"It was almost impossible for kids to not be happy when he was around," Hewitt said. "His tail was always spinning like a propeller and he was rarely without a doggie smile.

"No matter how thick their shells, the toughest kids would soften when they spent time with Wyeth."

Wyeth was such a fixture at the school that he had his own photo ID. He was particularly famed for his role as Metric Dog, mascot of the school's annual metric car races held in late January.

He also participated in class activities. Students would interview the dog while Hewitt "channeled" Wyeth's answers.

The interviews ended up as written stories.

"Whenever we applauded a performance in our room or at an assembly he would register his approval with a bark or two," Hewitt recalled.

"One of his favorite times of the day was recess. He would usually run the entire time, sometimes with kids chasing him and sometimes chasing his ball. He also loved 'read aloud' because he usually had several kids on the floor with him. They would pet him and sometimes put a pillow under his head to make him more comfortable.

"When a student was sad or crying he would go over to them and lick their face as if to say, "I love you, it will be all right."

Wyeth is believed to have developed a spinal tumor that damaged his hindquarters. Hewitt had to make the tough decision last week to put him down.

It wasn't easy breaking the news to his class. The kids shed plenty of tears.

"A lot of the pain for the kids was it brought up their losses," Hewitt said.

But the pain of loss will soon be overshadowed by the many memories of Wyeth the Wonder Dog, Dog of the Future.