Chyna, One Year Later (non Grey)

[Guest LazyBones]

today marks the one year anniversery of the the passing of chyna, an amstaff. she technically wasn't my dog, but i regarded as one of my own. and in the end, i think she regarded me as her momma.

 

i still remember the day she became a part of the family. at the time, my brother, his GF (who would later be his wife), my mom, her BF, and i lived in this house. also, there were my two girls, gumby and pokey. my brother and his GF were working at the same place at the time, and it had been broken into and burglarized. they wanted a dog to take to work with them, for security purposes. i had suggested an amstaff, because i had read that they are typically friendly to people, yet they are intuitive and have a knack for distinguishing friend from foe. so, we saw some pups for sale. there was one left, a shy little brindle/white girl. i was kinda skeptical, but brother's GF decided to take her. "chyna" was a bit shy and scared of us at first, but it wasn't long before she warmed up and became a member of the family. her and gumby had fun mouth-wrestling (gumby sounding like chewbacca), running around, etc. chyna became an expert broom killer, and she also hated lawnmowers, flyswatters, weedwackers, etc. oh, and true to the breed description, she was VERY intuitive about people.

 

later on, brother's GF found out she was pregnant. so, she, my brother, and chyna moved into a rental house, and later my brother anf his GF were married. unfortunately, chyna ended up living outdoors. that bothered me. just about every time my mom and i would go over to visit, chyna would be at the gate, excited to see us. i, of course, would have to go over and say hi, and i always felt guilty when it was time to go inside to visit my brother and all. chyna did have the necessary provisions, and i often i would arrive at the house to see my brother out there spendind time with chyna. but later on, he would separate from his wife and move back here. he missed chyna, as did i.

 

so around thanksgiving 2005, my brother gets a call from his ex, saying that she is moving, can't take chyna, and asked if he wanted her. of course he wanted to, and my mom, brother, and i (mom's BF was no longer living here) agreed that we'd want to have her back. i was unprepared for what i'd see and hear, though. when he went to go pick chyna up, he said that he saw no water for her anywhere, and there was poop all over. also, chyna was very thin. there were times when, after coming in the house, she would just suddenly collapse and struggle to get up. i rushed to her side to calm her down, then help her to her feet. something was definately wrong.

 

brother and i took chyna to the vet, where we learned that she was infected with hookworms and heartworms. we were told that most dogs make it through, and go on to live pretty normal lives. so, we were hopeful. the hooks were easily taken care of, but the HW treatment was very hard on her. it was hard on me to see her suffer the way she did. this just wasn't fair.

 

it is strange....when chyna did come back to our family, and was officially my brother's dog, she seemed to stick to me the most. if a complete stranger were to come into our house and observe chyna's interactions with us, he/she would likely assume chyna was MY dog. she seemed to sit by my side, put her head in my lap, follow me around the most. i guess she regarded me as her momma. toward the end, i think she was trying to tell me she had had enough and was ready to go. she'd lay her head in my lap, and the look on her face seemed to tell it all. then one night, she took a turn for the worse, and was rushed to the e-vet. her heart was just too damaged, and we were told she likely wouldn't have a normal life. unfortunately, my brother had to make the decision to let her go. we took her to our regular vet. it was tough, even for the vet, who was trying to hold back tears herself.

 

like i said, even though she wasn't my own dog, i regarded her as one of my own, and i was devastated when we lost her. she was too young, about a month shy of her 4th birthday. this should have NEVER happened. if only that *&@^% who had her before had taken the time to take a pill from its packaging and give it to chyna once a month, something that would have only taken about 5 minutes MAX, chyna would still be happy and healthy today.

 

i know most of the people here treat their pets very well and all, however, i still feel it is important to stress how important it is to take your pets to the vet for regular checkups, and to provide them with everything needed to keep them in good health. perhaps there is someone you know who might feel otherwise, and i hope chyna's story might open some people's eyes.

 

CHYNA REIGN

February 20, 2003 - January 5, 2006

 

 

 

[Guest greytgirl]

Run Free Sweet Beautiful girlie

[patricia]

Oh beautiful Angel Chyna...you are so loved and so missed.

[retiredracers]

Oh, I remember your posts about Chyna and know how much you love her. She seemed like a remarkable girl and I'm sorry that you lost her so young. (I love the picture of her snuggling with your greyhound)

 

[Guest Tenderhearts]

I remember Chyna well! I'm so glad she had you there for her in the end, as well as your brother :grouphug

 

PS. I can just see her cleaning Lori Ann's ears over the bridge!

[Guest LazyBones]

PS. I can just see her cleaning Lori Ann's ears over the bridge!

 

oh yes, when she was younger, she loved to clean gumby's and pokey's ears. they put up with it, but sometimes you had to wonder if they enjoyed it sometimes.

 

BTW, i really love your new signature.

Edited January 6, 2007 by LazyBones

[Guest vahoundlover]

I remember Chyna as well....I'm glad she had you and knew love in the end.

 

[Batmom]

I remember Chyna, too. Hugs to you and your brother.

 

Hope you are running and chasing and finding some good ears to clean in the land over the bridge, little girl. Won't forget you, ever.

[Guest kristijewell]

Chyna was beautiful. I'm so sorry.