24th January 2008

Cody & Max - Should I Put Them Down Together?

It’s 3:30 in the morning.  I’m up because Cody, my chow dog, has gotten sick again with her terrible coughing attacks.  She has never gotten 100% better since June of 2007, when MedVet opened her up only to discover nothing in her intestines.  I blogged about that issue in June of last year. 

 Cody’s coughing attacks are so incredibly horrible that you just want to calm her.  My stomach tightens as she goes into the attack, and I feel so incredibly bad for her.  I’ve tried everything - she’s been to five or more vets in the past six months.  We’ve spent over $7,000 trying to figure out the problem only to not discover what’s wrong.  There gets to be a point when you just want to leave well enough alone - and let nature take its course.  The probing, the visits, the invasiveness, the cost - all very intense.  But she’s absolutely the best dog I’ve ever had - better than any dog growing up, and better than the other two dogs I’ve had.

I can hear her downstairs right now - it just is truly dreadful - I’ve tried capturing it on tape so you can hear what this is like - but it comes intermittently and lasts for about 30 seconds.  She has not eaten much because she can’t get the food down, and it does appear this is coming from an upset stomach, or perhaps a progression of cancer that we’ve never been able to find?

So, the vet is available this weekend, or I can use the Born Free service where they come to your house.   I guess I want my regular vet to do this.  I tried using one vet’s service but I found the vet’s wife to be somewhat insensitive and quite frankly rude when I asked them to come to me.  I was referred to Born Free instead.  My other vet has been more than willing to do this, but is out of town until tomorrow, Thursday. 

‘When you have to put a loved animal down, you actually feel like you’re pre-meditating murder - of a dog and cat I know - but still it feels horrible.  I don’t want to elect to put the animal to sleep - I want the animal to go naturally, right?  In their sleep, their way - but the suffering that you watch when their final moments come. 

As my other dog, Lucky, and my sweet kitty Misha, the brother of Max, laid here in bed with me, I began to ponder the Saturday arrangements pending vet availability (which isn’t easy to arrange).  I began to cry, really hard, sobbing in my pillow, hating the reality of it.  I’m crying now as I write.  Lucky, she’s oblivious to their life, so I think she’ll be fine - if anything she’s likely to be out of control even moreso as Cody does provide some training and structure to what Lucky is allowed to do when she’s around.

 Misha - he’ll be saying goodbye to his brother - but I think he’ll be okay too.  He’s a miracle himself, many times over, so I think he’ll hang on for a while, maybe a year or so. 

Monroe, I worry about him.  Cody protects Monroe from Lucky, who just wants to play with Monroe.  Lucky who has taken to licking Max’s ears (and max actually lets him), really likes to chase Monroe.  She doesn’t really bother Misha, who is wise enough to perch above Lucky’s head and look down on her with disdain.

So, what to do - and how to do it - and how to survive it.  I think of excrutiating details of where I should do it so their karma can release into my home - will they go off and play together - rediculous, right?

Or, if you are seriously into pets, you’ve struggled with this too at some point and probably sympathize along with me.  But with sick animals in the house, the home gets to be out of balance, and the other animals I think get stressed too - just from them being sick.  They pick up on my stress of trying to take care of them.

If you’re reading this, and have posted pictures or videos of your loved cats and dogs, please send them to me in the comments field, link to your pics please.  Animals do bring so much laughter and enjoyment most of the time to your life - that I can’t imagine life without them.

Whenever I hurt, I always try to bring up something funny so here goes:

Two moments of chaos with the kids in the past couple of days - I have a new cleaning lady who by the way is not a “lady” if you know what I mean.  Think Dirty Sexy Money - seen Patty?  Literally the same.  Don’t get me wrong, Patty can clean with the best.  But all I could think was SNL and Dirty Sexy Money.  The Baldwin girlfriend …. are you getting me? 

Patty comes in last week for the first deep clean of the house.  I’m kinda shocked because i wasn’t expecting this.  Well, poor girl - she comes in - Max is getting senile and sick some days and doesn’t recall where the boxes are - so I’ve put him downstairs in the litter/laundry room and closed the door so I can prepare for “Patty”.  Scaredy Cat Monroe, who is terribly afraid of the strangers, well, he’s run downstairs to tunnel under the bedspread.  Perhpas he’s even tried to run into litter room, and discovered, oh shit, the door is closed.  So, he takes the liberty of letting his angst out by the litter box door.  If you know what I mean….

I bring Patty downstairs, only to discover this - how’s that for first impressions - of course I’m mortified.  I see Monroe under the bedspread, a big lump in the bed.  Cody, my loyal chow protective dog is following Patty like a hawk - and is not letting her out of her sight whatsoever - I apologize to Patty about Max and Monroe - only to turn around and discover Cody has decided to clean the carpet herself - oh God - Calgon take me away!

Wise kitty Misha - he’s upstairs oblivious to this - but all I can think of is the pure chaos in my house - Patty wants to ask questions about the house …. I’m thinking I need to clean my carpet right now ….. yowza.  It was like a moment on SuperNanny, or Cesar Milan’s show on Animal Planet.  

 The pet sitter shows up soon after and takes Lucky for a walk.  Lucky is pulling my pet sitter so bad that day that she walks into my room and tells me that Lucky is fired, we’re fired.  No more Lucky pulling on her.  When stressful moments like this happen and people are falling apart around me - I tend to get very calm - just to make them feel better - sometimes to get rid of them quickly - and then it’s time to fix, fix the situation and cope - bring things back to the typical state of quiet around here.

Out I go to PetsMart, determined to fix the problem.  I buy two new leashes, a reflective collar (Lucky has already eaten that), Cesar’s book on “Be the Pack Leader”, and a gentle leader, oh, and two sweaters for Lucky who gets cold outside on her walks.  Let me tell you - the leash with the grip and the gentle leader are divine assists. 

Lucky has been re-hired.  Thank God - my pet sitter has agreed to walk her again.  Indeed, Lucky was a bucking bronco the first three times on the new leash - but I must say I think she likes her new OSU Buckeyes sweater.  I can’t believe I’m dressing a dog, especially having a Chow for all these years.  But Lucky likes her sweather and now knows the lead is a sign of a good long walk. 

Despite this new hope of a possibly trained dog in the near future, we’re still having problems with two things with Lucky - poopin’ in the house despite a walk, or having just been let outside, and the recent and very wonderful discovery of shoes.  Shoes are fun, right?  Leather tastes so good, right?  What a dog tastes in leather is beyond me.  But she decided to break out of her kennel while Cody and I were out to get her medicine the other night.  She likes to take the shoes from the foyer, bring them into the living room, deposit them, and then play with them, chew them, yeah - so I come home and see Lucky out of her kennel.  I’m immediately worried because this dog can do some serious damage in no time flat.

Lucky thinks this is super cool - boss and that mean dog Cody is gone - cool!  I can chase cats, see if there ar eany crumbs in the kitchen, oh, and there’s that cool box of goodies downstairs in the basement, and shoot, if I need to go to the bathroom, well, I’ll just run down to that room where the kitties go - and these shoes, I love leather shoes - so chewy and yummy!

So, my beloved Clark shoes - one destroyed, absolutely destroyed.  Now why couldn’t she have done the slippers - I never wear those things anyway.

pet proofing the house - huh?  I hear ya!

Now, listen, if that dog ever touches my Manolos!!!!!!!! It’s mincemeat time!!!!!  Cat food - a new brand - Lucky cat food - in memory of Manolo slingbacks.  hide your Manolos, quick, while you can!

So Cody is hacking up her lungs, dry heaving, and watering at the eyes, Max is wandering around my house wondering where the box is, Monroe is talking  - Lucky is discovering new shoes and anything else she can play with - the only sane one in this house - my 17 year old cat Misha.  he’s wise enough to just stay upstairs where it’s quiet, clean, and very serene.

I’ve given it 17 and 13 years respectively with Cody and Max - I can only hope I have the strength to call the vet tomorrow - and then God help us all on Saturday and Sunday. 

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