There is no picture or update from week 36 because it was an awful week. If you followed along, you know that in December we put down out precious little poodle, Tasha. This week, Coco got much worse and had to be put to sleep. Two dogs in about a month. We still have one dog, Dolce. She is not adjusting well and we feel awful.
Coco had a tumor in his mouth that started to grow in June. The day I returned from my honeymoon in Jordan and the day I found out I was pregnant with Nugget, he had to be taken to the emergency vet because he was bleeding so bad. We had been told that the growth was cancerous and not worth removing. No one told us how long Coco would last. We took him home and started to try to manage his care. It was not easy. You constantly had to follow him around with a rag because he was either bleeding or drooling. We love that dog though, so the extra work was worth it.
This past week we were dealing with an increase in blood loss...thank God for hard wood floors. We thought maybe the solution was to add a cone so he would have to stop licking. He had a horrible habit of licking his legs and this would make him bleed more. This worked for awhile, we had two cones and changed them out frequently. The night before we had to take him in, he hemorrhaged in the middle of the night, still not losing enough blood to really change him, but we had to make the decision that this was no way for him to live. We had Dolce say goodbye and we took him to the vet.
Taking him into the vet was hard. I had called before because Coco could still walk and in some cases still wag his tail. Was this the case for other dogs that had random tumors growing? I asked this question for about a month prior to making the final decision. Many people shared their stories with me and said that many times when they put their dogs down that they still appeared fine. This was comforting to me.
When we got to the vet, I was very happy to see that there was no one in the waiting room. When we put Tasha down, I hated the pity that the others gave you while you were standing there with your dying dog. I also didn't think it was fair for them to have to even show that pity when their dog is probably in an awful situation. We went right back to the familiar room, we had the same vet that put Tasha down, we filled out the familiar papers and answered the same questions: No, our dog has not bit anyone in the last 5 days (I laughed at this because he clearly couldn't), Yes, we understand we are deciding to euthanize our dog, Yes, we would like a private cremation. We got Coco back in 2009 because he got along so well with my other dog Nala.
When Nala died I kept her ashes and planned to bury them together. That is just what we will do in spring when the ground dethaws. Nala had a very similar growth.
I miss my puppies, but I know that things happen for a reason. We have a baby on the way and I know our life is easier with just one dog. Even though it is this big white beast:
She can entertain herself and loves to just sit outside for hours. Plus, Jad could totally ride her like a pony when he gets older. I would love any tips that that you guys could leave to make her life easier right now. She lost her two best friends and is so not use to being alone. We give her kongs to distract her when we leave, but I need some new ideas.
Coco had a tumor in his mouth that started to grow in June. The day I returned from my honeymoon in Jordan and the day I found out I was pregnant with Nugget, he had to be taken to the emergency vet because he was bleeding so bad. We had been told that the growth was cancerous and not worth removing. No one told us how long Coco would last. We took him home and started to try to manage his care. It was not easy. You constantly had to follow him around with a rag because he was either bleeding or drooling. We love that dog though, so the extra work was worth it.
This past week we were dealing with an increase in blood loss...thank God for hard wood floors. We thought maybe the solution was to add a cone so he would have to stop licking. He had a horrible habit of licking his legs and this would make him bleed more. This worked for awhile, we had two cones and changed them out frequently. The night before we had to take him in, he hemorrhaged in the middle of the night, still not losing enough blood to really change him, but we had to make the decision that this was no way for him to live. We had Dolce say goodbye and we took him to the vet.
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| She really did say goodbye, I am not just a crazy dog lady |
When we got to the vet, I was very happy to see that there was no one in the waiting room. When we put Tasha down, I hated the pity that the others gave you while you were standing there with your dying dog. I also didn't think it was fair for them to have to even show that pity when their dog is probably in an awful situation. We went right back to the familiar room, we had the same vet that put Tasha down, we filled out the familiar papers and answered the same questions: No, our dog has not bit anyone in the last 5 days (I laughed at this because he clearly couldn't), Yes, we understand we are deciding to euthanize our dog, Yes, we would like a private cremation. We got Coco back in 2009 because he got along so well with my other dog Nala.
I miss my puppies, but I know that things happen for a reason. We have a baby on the way and I know our life is easier with just one dog. Even though it is this big white beast:
Awwee Coco did look a lot like Zambuka.
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