I admit, I never did a "formal" introduction - for that I apologize, maybe I'll do that soon. Therefore I realize that ya'll don't really "know" any of us. I want to try to participate more ... I seem to have a hard time with keeping up !!
But please, indulge me in my time or sorrow ....
I'm the one that sent a message asking for a communicator -- in a hurry.
Thank you Catherine for your help, and thank all of you for your good thoughts for my little girl.
Ever since she came into my house, I've had a challenge getting and keeping weight on her. The first of this year I had managed to get her up to 62+ lbs .. and she looked gooooood !! I had to be gone for work for 3 weeks in April, she stressed off some lbs .. and never got those back. I'm really not sure just how long things had been getting worse, but the last 2 - 2.5 weeks things got dramatically worse. She had frequently been one to not eat breakfast, but usually would eat her supper --- sometimes I could have her left over breakfast with the whole added supper and she'd eat it all. Recently she had been skipping breakfast and not even eating all of the left over. For the longest time, I just kept thinking it was just "her", and she'd eventually turn things around. She has always had so many challenges since I got her that I didn't even know what to have a vet look for/at ... She just kept loosing weight. But she was keeping down what she did manage to eat. Until the Monday before Thanksgiving. The boys had dental appts at the vet on Tuesday, so I asked if I could bring her in also. For the week before I had really started noticing changes. I started thinking it was kidney -- she developed a "smell". I don't know if any other ailments have an odor -- but I do know that renal failure does. I took her with the boys on Tuesday. When they weighed her I was shocked --- she weighed 49lbs.
The good blood --- everything was fine. No elevated kidney values. All the other values were in normal range, if any were abnormal, they were just slightly abnormal and they could be explained by her dehydration.
They did x-rays. She had a slightly enlarged heart. There was an area of the stomach that looked "funny". Nothing obvious or glaring -- just "different". Could have been caused by inflammation. They saw arthritis spurs starting on her spine (vertabrea) already ... she had to be in pain. She also had flat feet and arthritis in her ankles (she creeked like an old wooden floor - LOUDLY - when going up steps).
They did a barium series --- everything moved through just fine. The "funny" area of the stomach still showed up. After the barium series, she trotted back into the room with the boys (who were refusing to eat the dry dog food offered by the vet!) ... went straight to the food bowl, ate about a cup of food (she hadn't touched dog food for a week), got a good drink of water and took a nap.
Vet thought it could just be ulcers/inflammation. Try cimeditine to calm things down --- barium can/will calm things the same and maybe that's what happened. The next diagnostics to be done would be to scope her --- invasive and requiring anesthesia. I didn't want to go that far yet.
Vet said that the cimeditine, if it was going to work, should make a dramatic improvement in appetite within 48 hrs.
48hrs later Sadie was back at the vets ... no improvement. In fact, she had lost more weight and muscle mass and control. She had liked eating turkey on T-giving ... but vomited it all later (VERY sour stomach).
Back to the scope option --- I still couldn't do it. The vet pretty much figured that there was probably esophagus or stomach cancer -- or something intestinal, but not verified. Vet felt (and so did I) that Sadie would not make it through the anesthesia --- and as the vet said "I do not want to lose her on the table".
Decision was made -- well, I took her home overnight, to sleep in her house, on her couch one more time. I wasn't ready at that moment.
She walked herself into the vet's - tail wagging, looking for attention.
She was the absolute best, right up to the end.
I'm dying inside. Here is my "tribute" to her...
My sweet, sweet Sadie Sue came into my home almost 3 years ago scared and lost. She spent the first 3 days plastered against my front door. If I dared to look at her, she would either shake and quiver -- or, she would jump up and literally put her nose into the corner. If I said "let's go outside" she would cower ... I would have to go, wrap my arm around her chest, hold her head up and walk her to the back door. She would barely step off the patio to take care of business .. then head back in.
She would not look at me -- make eye contact. She "sang" to me the entire second night she was with me. Luckily --- that didn't last longer than that 1 night!
By the 3rd or 4th night, she had worked her way to the bed in the middle of the livingroom. By the 5th or 6th night she was on the couch, and roached quickly after that.
She soon became the queen, the owner, the master of my couch, my house ...... my heart...
She new what she wanted and would head right for it -- but would also look to me for confirmation/confidence..
She loved everyone, she loved to rub her face on you, she would ram her face between your knees so you could scratch her back and hiney... she would just prance and bounce with happiness when you scratched her butt.
This is beyond "not fair" ...she did NOT have enough of a life. she was cheated by whatever happened in her early life.
She was not a retired racer --- she was to be a coyote (hunting) dog.
She was my sweet little girl, she was the best little girl in the world ... there will never be another sweet Sadie .... I could never have asked for a better baby...
I love her and I will always miss her. This house has a big hole in it right now... I have 2 other dogs, but there is such a hole in the soul.
Run free sweet girl .... you won't have any more pain, you can rub your face to your hearts content ... and hopefully, you can now run like a greyhound should.
I'll be seeing you ....
