Griffey the Great Golden

Well, it has been almost a month since we said goodbye to our Griffey, the world’s greatest golden retriever.  He was not a show dog, he couldn’t hunt and he had no interest in actually retrieving, but his personality far exceeded any breed standard.  I adopted Griffey on March 16, 2001, he was only seven weeks old when I brought him home.  It took only two short weeks for me to fall in love with him, and it took about two more months before he completely monopolized my heart, and he did for his entire ten years, maybe even now still, even though he is gone.  I told my husband recently that Griffey was my “true love”, and he said to me “yeah, I kinda figured”.  God love them, the dog and the hubby.   From the moment Doug met me and Griffey (he actually met us both on the same night) he knew that dog came first in my life, and one of the reasons I love Doug is because he understood that.

I remember the exact moment Griffey won me over.  He was playing in the backyard as I was watering the flowers, and I set the hose down (still running) for a moment and when I turned around, the water had filled up a hole in the yard, and Griffey had found his new loves…water and mud!  He was covered in mud, but he was having the time of his puppy life.  He stopped and looked at me with his tilted head and those big brown eyes and instantly warmed my heart.  Yep, it was all over in that minute, I may have adopted him but hat dog officially owned me now.

His puppyhood was filled with the usual antics…chewed through furniture, chewed up a Bible (I guess he didn’t realize we were Catholic) and even tore the wallpaper off the wall.  But along with his moments of mischief, he embraced life to the fullest.  He didn’t meet a body of water he didn’t like, from the puddle on the street, to the bathtub, to swimming pools, lakes and even the ocean.  If water was anywhere nearby, he would find it.  Of course, he took obedience classes, and they never really worked.  Why?  Well,I can’t say I blame him, but blame myself.  I had sucker written all over me when it came to him, so disciplining tended to be my downfall.  I should have been better about making sure he didn’t tackle you when you entered the front door, or swipe a cookie from your hand or bust through the door when he saw his leash, but then again, would he be Griffey if he didn’t do all of these things?  Wasnt that part of his charm?  Okay, maybe only to me, but like I said, I was a sucker for this dog.

As he grew into adulthood, and for a good part of his adult life, he went to the vet about three times a year, besides the annual check ups, he had ear infections, allergies, hot spot, arthritis, back pain, constipation, vocal cord injury…just to name a few.  I don’t even want to imagine what this 100 pound ball of golden fur cost me over the years, and especially the last few months of his life, but honestly, that doesn’t even matter.  He was worth every copper penny.  But the health issues didn’t even compare to the fun he had…dog parks, dog parades, swimming at his grandparents every weekend, camping, vacations to the Smoky Mountains and the beach at Gulf Shores and thousands of walks.  He loved the car rides, the sight of his leash, and even came to understand what the iPod was and meant (Mommy was gearing up to walk him).

Several years after adopting the Moose (the nickname we gave him, because his size made him a moose in doggy world), it would become evident that I needed him as much as he needed me.  I went through a pretty rough patch where my world was very quickly turned upside down.  But through all of the topsy turvy, the unknown, the change, I always had one consistency in my life…Griffey.  Many days he was the reason I got up in the morning and came home at night.  He became my faithful and loyal companion, my confidant, my best friend.  He was the one thing that could bring me joy in an otherwise very gloomy time.  I wonder if I would have survived without the constant love he gave me during that time.

But after every dark cloud, comes a shining sun.  Griffey was by my side when I met so many new friends, moved into new places and started to establish our new life.  And then one day, a knock on our front door and opening it up to what would be our future.  Yep, that day that Doug came to pick me up for our first date (blind date), he came in and of course Griffey gave him the typical Griffey Welcome, which consists of whining, crying, running in circles until you gave him your undivided attention.  Doug then said to me “that is one good looking dog”.  Wow, this guy knows that the way to my heart is not flowers or diamonds, but to like my dog!  (Although I didn’t know it at the time, the diamond would come later!)

Doug accepted from the very beginning that it was a package deal, you get me, you get the dog.  And, he fully accepted the challenge (both me and the dog)!  Although Griffey drove him crazy at times (well, okay he occasionally drove me crazy too), he grew to love the dog as his own, and they formed a very special bond.  At times I even wondered if Doug was taking over the BFF spot that I held in Griffey’s life for so long.  Griffey loved Doug for his calm ways and probably the alpha position Doug took with him, as Griffey listened to Doug way better than he ever listened to me.  The truth is we became this happy and content family of three….well, until we adopted Ali Cat from a shelter, and after two weeks of chaos in the house, the four of us settled into our new family life.

It was about six months ago that we noticed Griffey was slowing down.  He didn’t want to play as long at the dog park, he would be pretty worn out after walks, and even didn’t stay in the pool all day as he used too.  He was also getting pretty gray in the face.  He was nine, going on ten, and definitely a senior in golden retrievers, but he still had his spunk and some days I would look into his eyes and just see that puppy that stole my heart so many years before.  It was shortly after Thanksgiving when we noticed obvious behavioral changes, not much excitement over his treats, a hard time getting up off the floor, not jumping in our bed, and sleeping in odd places in the house.  It was off to the vet we went.  The next two months, we were at the vet at least twice a week, and for a while we went every day for 10 consecutive days including three trips to the emergency animal hospital on the weekends.  We had blood tests, x-rays, chemical panels, ultrasounds, and way too many catheters for him.  We had about six different medications we tried, but nothing was working.  And, in fact, he was only getting worse.  We ruled out many diseases including cancer, but could never completely identify what was wrong.  We had wonderful vets, especially our beloved vet Dr. Toepke (http://www.howdershellanimalclinic.com/), but diagnosing a creature that can’t talk is just plain hard.  We concluded that he likely had a neuromuscular disease that was attacking his nervous system, concentrating mostly on the lower half of his body, but by his final week, he was losing control of muscles in his upper half.  For two months, Doug and I spent every moment we could with him, many weekends were spent on blankets on the floor watching movies and just letting him lie there between us.  Then, in mid January, we knew the time had come, he was showing signs of being in pain, and most of all he wasnt eating.  With the counsel of our vet, we understood that euthanasia was the best choice for him, not for us, but for him.  His last weekend was spent with visitors coming by to say their goodbyes, he had his favorite food, McDonald’s french fries, ice cream and Doug even made him venison steak.  Quite possibly the hardest weekend of my life, dreading Monday morning and watching the clock tick away.  But by Monday morning, it was clear what we needed to do, he was pretty miserable and I had said the entire time I had Griffey that the moment he was in pain and it couldn’t be fixed, then I would make the best decision I could for him on his behalf.

The thing about euthanasia is that it truly is the most humane thing you can do, it is respectable, it is completely selfless, it is a decision that does against everything that you desire (to keep the pert with you) and make a decision that is really best for them.  When I adopted him those ten years ago, I took the responsibility of his life in my hands, even when it came time to end that life.  Doug and I both took him to the vet that morning and we stayed with him the entire time.  As pure sadness filled out hearts, it was a very peaceful goodbye for him, one that he deserved for the great dog that he was.  However, the profound sadness, emptiness and void we would feel would be noticed for weeks afterwards.

The next week, our home was filled with flowers, cards, poems and we had over 55 messages on our Facbeook pages.  We were touched by the support we received from family and friends.  There is something about the love of pets that brings us together, and there is something about losing those pets that unites us.  We felt the love from so many people that understood the bond between an animal and human.

We think and talk about Griffey every day.  Our hearts and our home have a huge void in the them.  But as each day goes on, the tears do get less and less and we can start remembering the good moments and the joy he brought us.  We know that we will soon bring another soul into our lives.  Griffey showed me the love of an animal companion, and to honor him, we will rescue a golden retriever that needs us, from a local rescue organization. 

My sister said that Griffey was a one in a million dog, and he really truly was.  A part of my heart will always belong to him, and the memories we have will be cherished for always.  And, if we forgot even for a minute….I have about 500 pictures of him on my computer to remind me!  He was Griffey the Great Golden, and his life deserves to be celebrated.

I only hope that he is spending his days at the Rainbow Bridge (http://rainbowsbridge.com/poem.htm), swimming, with unlimited treats, chasing bunnies and running around like the pup he always was.  And, one day we will meet again, with his cold, wet nose at the pearly gates.

For Better, For Worse

The world's greatest dog.

Doug’s wishful hunting dog!

 

 When we took our vows a few months ago, we didn’t realize that the for better, for worse part would be put into effect right away.  The better parts have been amazing….the wedding weekend, the honeymoon, settling in as newlyweds, and earlier this month, I accepted a new position.  I am now the Corporate Communications Manager for Trans States, GoJet and Compass Airlines.  It is a great opportunity for me to get back into the corporate world and learn the exciting inside life of the airlines.  I am really enjoying the job and the industry.

The “for worse” part?  As I mentioned in an earlier post, our golden retriever Griffey faced some serious health issues since the beginning of December…we just didnt realize how serious.  After numerous visits to the vet and animal hospital, a series of medications and tests and endless phone calls to the vet, we realized he was sufferring from a neuro muscular disorder, and that it was attacking his system aggressively.  The first two weeks of January, he took a turn for the worse.  It was heartbreaking to see him go downhill…his loss of appetite (and this was a dog that would eat anything you put in front of him), his trouble using his lower motor muscles (bladder, colon and even his hind legs), but most of all, he lost his spunk.  An active puppy-like dog for his entire 10 years, the last two weeks, he barely met us at the door when we came home, didnt beg for treats or chase the kitty.  I knew something was terribly wrong.  Our last trip to the vet was one of the worst of my life…a discussion around the quality of life he had left, and euthanasia (the dreaded word I had been wanting to avoid, but the word that my gut knew was inevitable).  That Friday night trip to the vet’s office, when our trusted and loved vet told us that Griffey is just “not” eating, he doesnt “want” to eat about broke my heart.  I knew then that he was suffering more than he was letting on.  We decided to make him comfortable with some drugs for his last weekend at home.  Doug and I spent the very next weekend by his side, giving him as many special treats as he would eat…his favorite McDonald’s french fries, ice cream and even venison steak his Daddy made him.  We slept on the floor with him, we took turns sitting by his side petting him, we even took him for a final walk, where we noticed he was losing muscle control in his front paw.  Again, my heart broke.  He had visitors come by all weekend to see him and say goodbye.  We told him about the Rainbow Bridge and all the fun he would have, pain free and full of energy again.  I prayed that God would take care of him, and I prayed I would survive the next few days.  That Monday morning on my daily call to our vet, I told him I knew it was time…and I could tell Griffey was ready to go as well, as he had a difficult night.  Doug and I drove him to the vet’s office, the longest drive of my life, where we said our goodbyes and stayed with him until the very end.  Leaving the vet’s office without him was something I almost wasnt physically able to do. 

Saying goodbye was only part of the heartbreak, it was coming home without him and moving through our daily life without him.  Doug and I have both been very sad, and our house now seemed lifeless without this 100 pound furball of energy.  Now, just two weeks later, I still feel an overwhleming sense of sadness and loss.  Although Doug only had inherited him when he took me on, Griffey quickly became Doug’s best friend and they had a special bond.  But for me, this was a puppy I raised from just 7 weeks old, who was a daily part of my life, and the decisions I made that were about him (like choosing an SUV so he would be comfortable), were all part of the profound sadness I feel of losing my best and most loyal friend.  He was more than my pet, he was my family and he brought me much joy every day.

I am recapping my thoughts on Griffey in another post, but it has been difficult to write as the emotions and loss are still very new, but hopefully I can finish it and post it soon.  Griffey was an amazing dog, Doug and I received over 60 comments on Facebook, numerous texts and phone calls, flowers and tons of cards over our loss.  This confirms that not only was Griffey an unique and special dog, but it also confirms that pet lovers understand the sadness and heartbreak that comes with owning and losing a beloved pet.  This is quite possibly the saddest thing to ever happen to me.

We miss and talk about Griffey every day, and we pray he is swimming away at the Rainbow Bridge having the time of his life.

Happy New Year & Thank You!

Thank You For An Amazing Year!

Wow, it has been three months since the wedding, and we are just now updating the blog!  So much has happened in the past three months that have kept us busy, but my goal for the new year is to keep up my blogging!

We first want to thank all of our family and friends for an amazing wedding weekend.  It was just as fabulous as we had hoped and we loved every minute of it, from family arriving in town on the Wednesday before the wedding to the BBQs, the salon visits, the rehearsal, the dinner, the wedding day, to brunch on Sunday…all of it.  We experienced some of the happiest days of our lives, and the love we felt from all of you was incredibly special to us.

How can you follow one of the best weekends of your life???  Well, you take a two week honeymoon that was nothing short of amazing!  We cherish the time we spent together, the memories and new friends we made and the chance to celebrate our newly married status.

We came back from the honeymoon and took some time to settle in as newlyweds, after a very busy year, it was nice to spend some quiet time at home with our pets and each other.  But of course that was short lived, because life can get in the way…we bought a new truck for Doug, went to Chicago for Thanksgiving to celebrate with our Ludwig family, had our beloved dog face some serious health issues, and celebrated our first Christmas together as husband and wife.

I will add more pictures soon from the wedding and honeymoon, the holidays, and of course some really cute pictures of Griffey the Golden and Ali Cat!

We hope you all have a very happy new year, and we cant wait to see what 2011 brings for us.

Tails of a Senior Dog

Griffey in his tux on the wedding day!

One day you have this happy, healthy dog, who although is close to 10 years old, still seems to act like a puppy…he jumps on beds, he steals your socks, he barks when he sees the iPod, because he knows that means a walk, he devours every treat like it could be his last.

Then one day, you notice he has a harder time getting up, he eats a little less a day, he takes a little longer naps, and he is less concerned about chasing the kitty around the house.  You wonder if he is sick, or if reality is staring you in face, and your good buddy is starting to age.  We slowly seen this coming with Griffey, but were probably a bit in denial, until his recent health scare.

Shortly after Thanksgiving, we noticed he didn’t want to get up and greet us, he was less interested in his treats, he was moaning a bit, and was finding newer places to sleep in unusual spots around the house.  After a few days of this, it was off to the vet we go…figuring it was arthritis, we got the confirmed diagnosis that he may have some inflammation and not feeling so well.  So, home we go with anti-inflammatories.  However, a few days later we realized it was much more serious.  We started to notice he was wanting to potty all the time, and would not come in the house…he was trying over and over to urinate.  Not understanding this behavior, we headed back to the vet.  After rounds of testing including urinalysis, blood/chemistry screens, x-rays, and about 10 days of having a catheter put into the poor guy, it was determined that he had a neurogenic bladder and reflex dyssynergia.

Having no idea what that meant, we asked a lot of questions and did a lot of research…the simplest way to explain it is a degenerative nerve disease, and it affected the nerves that control his bladder, making him unable to control the muscle.  Very scary, and quite problematic when a large dog’s bladder can become full within 24-hours, which is what led to the 10-days of catheters.  But, was our guy a trooper…after a few days, he knew what was coming, but he took it like a champ.

With the help of a great team of vets, especially our favorite vet, Dr. Toepke at Howdershell Animal Clinic, and the emergency pet hospital at Midwest Vet Referral Services in Chesterfield (three trips after hours to this clinic), we found a drug that could help control the bladder by targeting the nerves around the bladder muscle.  After finding a vet pharmacy that could compound the drug, overnighting the drug via FedEx (plus almost having to have words with FedEx when they failed to deliver it), we finally had the phenoxybenzamine in our hands, and we prayed this “miracle drug”, as we like to call it, would work.  Three days later, Griffey started to urinate, and after a few more days, the ultrasound at the vet’s office confirmed that his bladder was emptying!  We were so relieved…but not as much as Griffey was I am sure (pun intended!).

Thinking we were in the clear, it would take several more weeks to figure out the right dosage for him.  Our boy has a hard time taking medicines, and can take only small dosages of drugs to feel the effects.  Having a very close call where we (Jaime) overdosed him with sedatives and muscle relaxers, we knew we’d have to adjust the drug so his system would tolerate it.

The phenoxybenzamine has a few side effects, and our Griffey got just about all of them…naseua, lethargic, loss of appetite and nasal congestion.  Our usual 100 pound dog, had lost close to 15 pounds, coming in at 86 pounds.  The dog who once could eat anything you put in front of him, was turning his nose up at everything from chicken and rice to ice cream.  Nothing is sadder than watching your furry friend get weaker and weaker from not eating, he started having tremors, would be unresponsive until you had to literally wake him up and would look at you with sad eyes pleading for help.  Back to the vet for more testing, we ruled out the dreaded cancer, and decided to lower the dosage of the miracle drug to see if the side effects would subside, but still allow him to urinate. 

We are now a little over one month since Griffey was first diagnosed, and three weeks from starting the medicine, and with a lower dosage, we are finally starting to see his appetite pick back up and he is getting a bit more energy.  He seems to be suffering from the nasal congestion and has had a bloody nose (and now he needs a humidifier in the room where he sleeps!), but we are seeing improvements…finally.

My reasons for sharing this???  Twofold…one, there isn’t a lot of information out there on his condition, and if other dog owners are experiencing something similar, then we hope to share Griffey’s story in the hopes that it can help them.  There were days when we thought we were close to losing our old boy, and we are so thankful to have a great and patient and thorough vet!  And, I like to think Griffey is pretty lucky to have a mommy and daddy that didn’t give up on him!

My second reason, is that I have had a big dose of reality, my best friend is a senior dog, he is not the little furry puppy that I brought home 10 years ago, he is not the “teen” dog that tore the wallpaper off my wall, and he is not the adult dog that he used to be, even just a few months ago.  Not many things in life can compare to the loyalty, love and companionship these four-legged family members give you.  Sharing these past 10 years of my life with him has brought a tremendous amount of joy to me.  I plan to make the most of the time I have left with him.

And, with being a senior dog comes some perks for him.  He is getting to eat canned dog food, some human foods, more belly rubs, quite a bit of babying and special reserved seating on the sofa.

I will keep you posted on his progress, and if you have a dog with similar condition or symptoms, feel free to contect me for more info.

And to Griffey VonLudwig…we love you our best buddy!  Go ahead, take up all the room on the sofa, you have earned it!

Silly Pets!

What is going on here?

So, people say pets can sense something is up…and, we think they are right!  Griffey and Ali are certain something is up.  They may not know that a wedding is around the corner, but they do know that boxes keep arriving each day in the mail, which is as much as a gift to Ali as it is for us.  She gets so excited about the boxes and wrapping paper.  We also have flowers, decorations, bags, papers scattered around the house as the wedding gets closer.  The pets are growing accustomed to sharing their spaces with “wedding junk”.  We haven’t yet broken the news to them that Mommy and Daddy are leaving for two weeks for a honeymoon, but I am sure they will be suspicious once the suitcases come out!  Check out the latest fun pics of our furry little friends!  Miss Ali Cat loves to lay in the sink, the tub, laundry baskets and her favorite chair, while Griffey prefers the floor….and he has a love/hate relationship with the floors…they are cool to lay down on, but he doesn’t get any traction when he has to get up quickly when the doorbell rings!

Summer Fun Pics

Enjoy our pictures from the last few months…including our 4^th of July celebration, our friends’ Christina and Jay’s wedding, and Doug’s niece April’s graduation party, among others….

What happened to May and June?

Wow, it has been awhile since I posted.  It is JULY now!!!  What happened to May and June??  They have flown by in our world…we have been so busy with many things, most importantly the upcoming wedding!

Our May and June were filled with Doug working on some big projects at work that kept him busy with some many long days, but it is good for business, right?  In May, we celebrated my birthday with dinner and cupcakes in the Central West End which our good friends, Phil and Sue.  We also took a trip to Chicago at the end of May to celebrate Doug’s niece April, who graduated from high school.  We had a lovely time at her graduation party and we are so excited for her as she will start college in fall. 

On the wedding front, in May, we ordered the bridesmaid dresses, had our menu tasting at the reception site and bought our wedding rings, very exciting!  We ended the month with a long holiday weekend to kick off summer.

June was filled with events for family and friends.  Good times celebrating wedding events for our friends Christina and Jay, celebrating Doug’s cousin David’s engagement to Amber, and Doug’s cousin Sydney had a graduation party as well, she is now a high school grad!  And, we had a fun reunion with friends of Jaime’s family from where she grew up.  We had a great visit with Doug’s best man, Joe, and his son, who stayed over on their way to Chicago, and it was great spending time with them.  We also spent a good amount of time hanging out at Jaime’s parents and enjoying the pool with all of this extreme heat and humidity….welcome to summers in St. Louis!

We had a great 4th of July weekend, followed by a weekend in Jeff City to celebrate our friends, Jay and Christina’s wedding.  Then, Doug’s dad came into town, and Doug and he put in new floors in our house and they look amazing!

So, now we are well into July and in deep in wedding plans.  Just two months to go, and we can’t wait!!

Bring on Spring, Loving April

The top ten highlights of our April:

• Gorgeous weather most of the month.
• We got a head start planting our veggies in the garden and flowers throughout the yard.
• We had a great Easter, we celebrated in St. Louis, and enjoyed our niece and nephews.  We also celebrated Doug’s birthday with my family. 
• Our nephew Nathan turned two and we celebrated with a Mickey party!
• We went to the Supercross Motorcycle event at the Ed Jones Dome, my first time at motorcycle races, oh the things I do since I met Doug!  :)
• Went morel mushroom hunting…Jaime=3, Doug=0
• The antics of our crazy pets…see the next post!
• We sold Doug’s truck and in the process of buying a new one.
• We made updates to the bathrooms, and adding a new shower to the master bath….gotta love drywall dust throughout the house.
• We have 5 months to wedding, and we are so excited to countdown to the day!

Animal Antics

So, April was a busy month for our two four legged friends.  Griffey, although 9 years old, one would never guess and think he may still be a puppy.  He loves that we have four kids in the family under the age of 7 who walk around with snacks in their hands that he helps himself too.  This Easter, the lovable, gentle giant helped himself to the Easter Egg hunt in my parents backyard.  Plastic eggs with candy were hidden all over the yard, and Griffey with his high-powered nose, found some before the kids did, chewed open the eggs, then ate the candy!  Chasing him around the backyard so the kids could have their eggs, was how we spent the egg hunt!

Then, Griffey, the hunter, didn’t disappoint with his newly acquired hunting skills.  In four days, he managed to find three baby bunnies in our backyard.  Whenever he is outside longer than 10 minutes, we know something is up.  As we went to check on him, we find him IN the garden (which is fenced off) with a bunny in his mouth.  As Doug goes out to save the bunny, Griffey the Proud, trots around the backyard with bunny in mouth.  Sadly, the baby bunny didn’t make it…now repeat this process three times.  Me….very sad by all this, poor, cute, little baby bunnies….Doug, however, was a little proud of his hunting dog.  So, a week later, after we thought the bunny drama had ended, we were planting veggies in the garden and uncovered a fourth baby bunny, buried in the garden.  Yep, this time he took it upon himself to bury it!  Lovely surprise for us!

Now, Ali, the playful, lovable, friendly cat has a personality all of her own.  Her favorite past-time is pushing EVERYTHING off the kitchen counter…we can handle this silliness.  However, one evening, after a bad storm, we came home to find three, yes three, cell phone cords chewed in half…completely in half….and they were plugged in.  Doug suspects she received a jolt, but it didn’t stop her from chewing through three of them!  But it is hard to get mad at either of these adorable creatures!

Busy March, Six Months to Go!

March was a busy and exciting month for us.  We had a great time at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, Doug’s mom and niece Julie came to visit, we welcomed a new nephew into this world, and we celebrated Doug’s 35th birthday!  And, despite both of us getting the flu and sick for a week, there is only six months to the wedding, so we are excited about that!

The St. Patrick’s Day Parade was COLD and a bit rainy, but we still had a great time.  Check out the pictures, we ended the day at  Jive & Wail, where our niece and nephews danced on stage…yep, babies in a bar!  (At least it was a kid-friendly event!)

Doug’s mom and niece came into town and we had a great weekend, and visited the wedding dress shop to try on wedding and bridesmaid dresses, then lunch with the girls.  And, the very next week, we welcomed our new nephew, Cooper Richard Powers, into the world on March 23. …check out the photos.  He is an adorable baby and we are happy to add a 6th to our nieces and nephews count.

We ended the month with Doug’s 35th birthday by spending the weekend in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri.  We visited a Bed & Breakfast ( http://www.southernhotelbb.com/ ) , antique shops, quaint restaurants and the Cave Vineyard ( http://www.cavevineyard.com/ ), which is a winery in a cave. Very cool!  We then the spent the last few days of March playing the Wii…Doug’s birthday present, so we are finally not the last people on earth to own the Wii.