linda

What a lovely story and picture - she was a lucky girl.

Judy, I'm so so sorry. What a lovely girl she was!

Such lovely pictures, such a lovely boy who found the best home and was obviously so loved. Run free Dude, we won't forget you!

What a beautiful tribute, he was a special boy. So sorry.

thinking of Gee

I'm so so sorry.

Great news! Feel better soon, Teagan!

I'm so sorry to hear this...take care...

I'm so sorry to read this - we followed her adventures with great interest and affection. What a wonderful thing you did for her, and she did for you. Run free Bee.

What a beautiful tribute, obviously made a huge impression in a too-short time. Hugs to the whole family.

I'm so sorry to read this. She is adorable, and I'm sure appreciated everything you did for her.

What a gorgeous girl who was so loved - you did such an unselfish thing. Take care.

I'm so sorry - run pain-free Ferigin!

Take care - this is so hard, but it will get better with time...

So very very sorry...

Deb, that's funny, I've been thinking about the three old "golden girls" (all went this year) Greta, Sophia and Molly finding each other. I know they all had hats (I actually have the one that - I think - you sent Greta, but by the time I got it through the auction Molly's lymph nodes were inflamed and it wasn't comfortable to have on for long). I think they're sitting around in hats, boas and pearls drinking iced tea (or stronger!) and chatting! It does make me feel a little better! Pepperjack, thank you so much for posting that - I can see a bit of her in the face, and I'll be following Sky Warren going forward! It's nice to have a continuing connection!

I want to thank everyone for their kind wishes. I'm still in shock when I think she's gone, but did want to offer a bit more coherent remembrance of this special girl. Molly came to me 3 1/2 years ago when she was almost 9. I had been looking for an older companion for Gary, and when I saw her available went to take a look. She was a little slip of a thing, and so quiet and dainty - she and Gary hit it off right away and arrangements were made for her to come home. She had a bit of adjustment the first month - she was a little bossy and she chewed up a few things, but that was it. Not one accident and once she got the message about the chewing, I honestly don't recall her getting into any other mischief. She was a mum of 53 puppies (many of whom raced well, she was listed in the top dam rankings for several years), but you'd never know it - she was young at heart, vocal - she was a talker, we had many long chats - and would spin when she was happy, which she almost always was. We had no health issues with her until this June - she was always fit as a fiddle. This June her lymph nodes became swollen and we went through the various stages of investigation, but never to reach a diagnosis (although I still suspect a tick disease). Last Thursday she was in for chest xrays and the vet was very impressed by how good her lungs, heart and gut looked, especially for a 12 year old (they took a few pictures, expecting to find a tumor, but nothing at all looked out of the ordinary). A specialist appointment was booked for tomorrow. Saturday was a rough day for her with her recurrent fever but Sunday morning she seemed fine (except for the ever-present lymph nodes under her neck). Next thing I knew, she was having what I believe was a heart attack, and within minutes she was gone. Every dog is special in their own way to us. I will remember Molly as a true lady, wise, patient and forgiving of Gary's antics and attempts to hog all food and treats. She will truly be missed - I am heartbroken. I will see you again someday. Kiowa Mysticrule (Molly) July 25, 1999 - October 2, 2011

The sweetest dog I have ever had just passed away in my arms. Molly has been fighting an undefined illness since June, no one was able to pin it down. She just ate some chicken, was walking around, fell into her bed and started to cry, but it was clear she was going. I'll have to write more when I can - I'm in shock right now. Linda

I bought some from Janet Crowley on Etsy - they are amazing and very well priced. Great colors. This was about a year ago, I assume she's still there...

I'm really sorry to hear this. Hoping Dorie is feeling a bit better and home soon for as long as possible. They leave us too soon. Linda

Thanks everyone for your ideas. We're having a good weekend, she's like normal except for still having swollen lymph nodes, although they're about as good as they've been since this started. I'll mention these thoughts to the vet when we speak this week. Linda

I'm currently working with the vet to try to figure out what's going on with Molly, and thought I'd put this out there in case anyone has experienced something similar. Molly is 12, and has been in great health the three years I've had her other than a couple of UTI's A couple of months ago, her neck lymph nodes became swollen. This actually followed a flu that I had with swollen lymph nodes about a week before, so I didn't fuss about it immediately but when they didn't go down we went to the vet and got the presumption of lymphoma. However a biopsy was negative, and no other nodes were palpable, so we moved onto some type of infection and a course of Baytril. There was no response to this, she was running a fever, and we moved to a course of Doxy for four weeks. There was a partial response to this in that the nodes went down in size but never completely resolved, they fluctuated and she continued to run a cyclical fever. At this point we tested for tick borne diseases (negative) and also ran a full panel that showed absolutely nothing but some plasma globulin suggesting inflammation somewhere (apparently could be anything from dental infection to cancer). We're going to do two more weeks of doxy since there was some response and also Clavamox in case it's from her not-great teeth (but the vet isn't really sold on this and neither of us want to put her under while there's something going on). She fluctuates a lot day to day. Yesterday she looked like she felt crummy and was running a fever, but today (and the day before yesterday) she's cool and looks better - the nodes are still present but smaller than yesterday. She's eating no problem. No changes in food, coat looks good. At times she has a dry cough but it normally lasts a half day or so and then disappears for sometimes weeks. One thing that she tried shortly before this started was Sasha's Blend, a green mussel supplement. This is going on for so long that I doubt it's allergies or anything but I've left that question with the vet as well. Does any of this sound familiar to anyone? Thanks!

I'm so sorry...

So so sorry...take care...

We're currently awaiting confirmation on this diagnosis with Molly, and I've already decided that we won't be going the chemo route if this is what it turns out to be. I don't personally think that dogs think much into the future, but rather live the moment. And when more of the moments are uncomfortable for them than not, I think it's time. Only you can decide that. I feel that when I took custodianship of my dogs, I committed to doing what's best for them, and that includes letting them go with dignity.