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.

Read Full Post »

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.

Read Full Post »

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!

Read Full Post »