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If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went |
| -Will Rogers |
...and then there were four...harmony has been restored to the pack
...and then there were five...for oh, such a brief moment
...and then we were back to four after only 10 days -- Ellie we miss you!
Several months have passed since Ellie left us. We still miss her so but are blessed that Tessa has joined us. And, the pack, now back to 5, seems right once more (God is good all the time).
Bessie has left for the rainbow bridge after 15 years in our pack. We miss her greatly. Back to a pack of four plus our foster dog, Danny.
Danny went from foster to adopted. We're "failed fosters" but the good part is we have Danny as a member of our pack.
21 mos. is too short a time to love a wonderful dog such as Brünhilde. She survived IVDD to be taken from us by catastrophic kidney failure. We're now back down to four dogs in the pack. We really miss you Hildemer!
Desdemona, formerly "Trixie," also went from foster to adopted. As she was identified as "shy" at the Alachua Co. Animal Shelter she was put on the fast track to euthanasia, 24hrs. Her elderly owner had passed and his family didn't want her. They surrendered her to the shelter (please don't do that, find a rescue group that will help you - too many wonderful animals are put down as the shelters do their best but are not equipped to handle everything). The wonderful people at Helping Hands Rescue were able to convince the shelter management to hold her until the first of the week when they could pull her. She was vetted by the wonderful people at the UF Shelter Medicine program and then it was home with us. Alas, we're "failed fosters" once more and have realized that our hearts are not strong enough to foster. Dez was not eating for a few days and had a cough. After three weeks in our home, she was ours. She's not coughing, she's eating well, and enjoys playing with Hans and Tessa a great deal (she'll herd Connie a bit too). "Dezzie" is a wonderful little girl that has attached herself to our hearts and will be ours forever.
Some more photos of the pack - four badger dogs and one fuzzball ratter.
The pack shrank by one on Friday, 4 Oct. 2013, when our beloved Contessa succumbed to the effects of her immune mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA) and the cocktail of drugs meant to keep her alive. She will forever be my pup and I am merely still her human. Rest peacefully my girl. I'll miss you every day of my life. We're back to four.
We lost another of our fur family on Sunday, 26 Apr. 2015. Our "failed foster" of four years, Danny, passed of congestive heart failure. He had been a neglected hoarder case with a significant heartworm problem. The heartworm damage eventually lead to his passing. Danny was a loving dog that also suffered from blindness for the last two years of his life. He was loved by all his humans and fellow fur babies. We sorely miss you Dan-Dan.
On Sunday, 3 September 2017, we lost our beloved Johannes. Hans fought pancreatitis and colitis for nearly 18 mos. His body just didn't have any more to give. He passed peacefully in my arms with his best friend Andrew by his side. We miss you already, Honku. There are 10 more pieces of my heart at the rainbow bridge. Thanks for leaving a part of yours with me.
On May 22 I saw an announcement in Facebook by Skyway Dachshund Rescue out of Pinellas Park that 20 standard long-haired doxies had been surrendered. I had been looking for over 5 years for a new long-haired female like our Tessa. I immediately contacted them to see if any were still available. After sharing the story of our Tessa I was blessed with the pick of the three females that were surrendered. They came up for home visit and it was very obvious to me that Phoebe was to be our new pup. She was a small standard at 18.5 lbs but a beautiful dapple of chocolate and tan (sometimes called a merle in other breeds). On June 4, right after her spay, we went down to the Tampa Bay around to pick up our Phoebe. What a love. We're so blessed.
It's been far too long since an update on our doxies (and Taylor our honorary badger dog). Here's some new photos.
Our red dog continues to bring us love as she struggles with colitis and pancreatitis. Such an amazing pup. We love you Dezzie!
Dezdemona lost her battle with pancreatitis at 5:42p on Tuesday, 20 September 2022. She was cruising along pretty well but she couldn't keep her weight up. Things went south pretty quickly. Within a couple days it was clear there wasn't a path forward for our red dog. She passed peacefully in my arms with Cynthia, Andrew, and Dr. Berisha present. The folks at Micanopy Animal Hospital were in tears having grown to know and love our Dez. Rest well pup. You fought the good fight!
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