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Grief Healing Discussion Groups

SuzanneM

Members
  • Posts

    4
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Previous Fields

  • Date of Death
    7/31/2012
  • Name/Location of Hospice if they were involved:
    United States

Profile Information

  • Your gender
    Female
  • Location (city, state)
    Phoenix
  1. Thank you, Marty. I appreciate your kind words. I love the mental image of her at the Bridge running and playing (and eating all the forbidden things she couldn't have here on earth :-).
  2. Hello CJ, I feel the same way you do about your Boo Bear. There's never enough time with them. Even though life with my Mags was challenging, she was so worth it. She was a gift from my sister, and I got her at 12 weeks. I was conflicted about bringing a puppy into the house because I had a black lab, Annie who was 12 at the time, and I was worried that it would be too stressful for her. As it turned out Maggie thought Annie was a rock star, and it breathed new life into my old girl. Maggie grew into a beautiful, active, sweet girl and was my constant companion. She developed Megaesophagus just before her 4th birthday, and my vet suggested putting her down at that time. I learned how to manage it for the first year, built a special chair she sat in to eat. All her food went thru the blender, and she fought thru several bouts of aspiration pneumonia. She developed pockets in her esophagus, so food couldn't get to her stomach. Everything I fed her came up, and her weight was down over 20 pounds. Her last chance was a feeding tube. That was not without it's problems, but it worked, and she gained back all her weight and was able to live like a normal dog, except for the way she ate. She was tube fed 3 times a day. Now that she is gone, I feel at loose ends because I've structured my day around her schedule for so long, either feeding her myself or making sure someone else was there to take care of her. I feel good that at least I've found someone else who has a dog with similar circumstances who can take her leftover meds and syringes and her special chair.
  3. I am so very sorry about your losing Scarlet. It seems no matter how long we have them, their lives are too short. You clearly loved and cared for her very well for her to have such a wonderful long life. The other day someone told me to try and understand that we can't always control these things, and to try and accept that we all have a mosaic that is our life, and some are large and complex, and some are small and simple, but a complete picture, nonetheless. It's been a week and a half since I lost my sweet Maggie, and I'm just starting to feel that I can breathe again, but that there is a hole in my heart. I do feel grateful that she is whole again and picture her running and playing at the Bridge, eating anything she wants and waiting for me. I think this forum is a wonderful supportive place to support each other and share those feelings. Not everyone understands the depth of the relationships between our animals and ourselves.
  4. This week I sent my precious Maggie to the Bridge. After a brutal last day, she drew her last breath in peace, and is now free of her suffering. She was a very special girl, a 7 1/2 year old blond Lab. She had more than her share of health issues, but always a light spirit and so strong and resilient. She developed Megaesophagus about 3 1/2 years ago, and quickly learned to eat her food in her special chair that kept her upright. We went through many bouts of aspiration pneumonia that she contracted when she regurgitated food stuck in her esophagus. She developed pockets in her esophagus and food couldn't get to her stomach, and she was starving and lost nearly 30 pounds. We had a feeding tube inserted, she gained back her weight, and was a happy and active dog for another 2 1/2 years. She developed Laryngal Paralysis, unbeknownst to us, until she suffered a severe breathing episode while out playing. She couldn't cool her body, and by the time we could get her to the emergency hospital, her temp was 107. She aspirated while trying to get her breath, or while being intubated and developed AP. She spent the night in the hospital. She rallied, was released and we thought she would bounce back like she had done so many times before, but it proved too much for her little body. I sat up all night with her the next night, and it was clear that she wasn't going to make it, we took her back to the hospital and I held her in my arms as her spirit was released. She was my heart dog, my child and I am devastated. I've attached one of my favorite photos of her. She was so happy that day with Santa. She was born on Christmas day so it's always been special.
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