Pets and Comics

We had to say good-bye to our 15-year-old cockapoo Riley yesterday.
It got me reflecting on our pets and how I've always drawn them into my cartoons.
I've been putting Riley in my R.F.D. comic strip for years. His nickname was Riley-Roo. He was a pure joy. A bundle of energy - he never walked anywhere, he ran and his tail never stopped wagging. 

Here's the real Riley, a Riley R.F.D. strip and the work sheet I use to draw him.

Our cat Petey was my model for Mister, the cat in my UP on the HiLL strip. I named him Mister because I fell into a habit of greeting Petey with, "Hey, mister, what'cha doin?". Petey was a sweetie so we called him Sweetie Petey. He made a few appearances in my Concord Monitor editorial cartoons also.

Petey                                 Mister

And going back a bit was our beagle Abbey (I'm a Peanuts-admiring cartoonist - I had to have a Snoopy).
Abbey made a lot of appearances in my Monitor cartoons. She loved a good brushing and a belly rub. Oh, and like all beagles, SUPPER!!. She was a Beatle Beagle - I named her after Abbey Road. Pup, the dog in my UP on the HiLL strip is also sort of based on Abbey.

Abbey                Cartoon Abbey

Our current cat is a wild little boy named Rocky - we call him Rocky-Pocky. I am going to have to work him in to some cartoons somewhere. Below is picture of him on one of his jaunts outside. He's an indoor cat but my wife takes him out on a leash and loves it. He is definitely King of Sue's Flower Jungle. 

-MM