This past Saturday marked the ninth anniversary of my precious Lady’s death.
June 11th, 2002- I found myself in my vet’s office knowing the time had come to ease Lady’s suffering humanely. Just two days prior, there was no indication of the events that were to unfold.
Lady had been healthy until June 10th. There were no ongoing health issues prior to this. She was the sweetest and one of the gentlest dogs I’ve ever had the privelege of having in my life.
And now here I was making the ultimate decision to end her suffering of seizures that wouldn’t stop from the day before. What happened and why? Answers I will never have.
I had another dog, Buddy, at the same time I had Lady, and he, too, died suddenly of an explosive seizure of some type four years earlier.
Buddy had been slowing down but his personality was still intact. His eyesight became diminshed as did his hearing. His health started to decline six months earlier. He had a form of cancer at his tail but that didn’t impede his overall health. He lost weight. He began to walk in circles at night.
On that fateful day, May 5th, Buddy greeted me early in the morning as he always did. This poor fellow who now walked slowly had a twinge of energy when my husband took him out for his morning walk. He jumped extremely high. Buddy didn’t jump anymore. After Buddy had been in the house approximately 10 minutes, he ran full force with his head into my living room wall, then the tv back to another wall. He continuted this destructive behavior since I was unable to stop it. I called for my husband who did catch him but had to hold onto him for dear life. Buddy’s legs wouldn’t stop the running motion. I tried to calm him but he bit me. Buddy didn’t know what he was doing.
We took him to the emergency vet. Buddy’s body collapsed on the way. Because there was no way of knowing when this horrific event would happen again, we made the decision to euthanize him. He had neurological issues from the explosive seizure.
Lady had mutlitiple seizures and after she arrived home the next morning, she began to recover from the medicine she would now take on a permanent basis-phenobarbital for seizures. But Lady wasn’t the same. She began to walk in circles like Buddy. Buddy could stop. Lady couldn’t. Our Lady was gone. She knew me but her true personality was gone. I knew it was a matter of time before she had to endure another seizure. I couldn’t allow that to happen. I couldn’t allow her seizures to end up like Buddy’s explosive seizure.
So I found myself at my vet’s office, holding Lady before they placed the syringe in her that would end her life.
Remembering Lady’s untimely death reminds me of fond memories of two other dogs I had, Lenius and Shebe, who both died in my vet’s office. Shebe had seizures but died of cancer. Shebe had been discarded along Rt. 81 with a golf-ball sized tumor in her abdomen. My brother found her and saved her life. But I was the one who ultimately got her when he had to travel oversees for the Air Force.
I found tumors in her groin area which was discovered to be cancer. I fought for her to live and she bounced back for a short while until that day, November 15th, when her body slowly started to become paralyzed. It was time to end her suffering.
Lenius who had led a healthy life until I noticed her swollen abdomen. She had been happy except she drank alot of water in recent months prior to her death. She was taken to the vet and never returned home. I visited her every day for a week. I was the last one in the office besides the vet that last night when I was allowed to stay by her side. Her liver gave out. She died overnight, on November 5th.
And I can’t forget Prince, my first dog’s death. He was 16. I grew up with Prince. My brother and I had taken him to the vet earlier in the day. We were told that Prince had a heart condition and could die that night or live for another year. Prince died that night- March 14th. My mom’s birthday.
I know people remember birthdays, anniversaries and other important dates as do I. But I also remember when my beloved pets passed away. I’ve never forgotten any of these dates. Do you?
Is there anything wrong with that?