Dolly, my nearly fourteen year old Maltese/Shitzu mix and remaining comrade-at-arms, had herself a close call today. Because when I left for the vet’s this morning with her, I was pretty sure I’d be driving home alone.
She suffers from, well, from being fourteen. A heart murmur, possible fluid in the lungs, a couple of noticeable growths along her flanks. She’d taken to puking on a basis that had me concerned. In short, she was done.
I lost a dog in April, Dolly’s buddy Rikki, and it was brutal on me. I was surprised at how much losing her hit me. I mean, I didn’t even cry (maybe once) when my mom died, but here I was blobbering over a dog. So driving in today was almost funereal, looking at Dolly in her seat, the poor thing having no idea what I was considering for her.
Despite her afflictions, Dolly is still Dolly. She still has that snaggle tooth, she still watches the door with her ears up in anticipation of somebody coming in, she’s still a cutie, and she still carries herself well. She’s still eating and sleeping and going toodles outside. But I felt that things were starting to catch up with her and I worried about her quality of life.
But I came across a wonderful vet this morning, which isn’t really a surprise because all vets are wonderful, but this one was perfect, treating us both, dog and human, like a million bucks.
The result? A compromise of sorts, with Dolly coming home packing three different medications that need to be snuck past her discerning taste buds twice a day. Thank heavens for the bag of pill pouch treats for cats I purchased (Dolly’s just little) which does the trick nicely.
What a whirlwind. I start out the day with dread in my heart, recognizing each act this morning as a final one for her, her last meal, last time seeing home, last ride in the car, last time with me. Yet, instead of all these lasts, we get a reprieve! I had feared the worst, but instead I found myself in a situation that, far from ideal, was a hell of a lot better than offing my best friend.
So, in short, I’m pretty happy. Pretty relieved.
I swear to God, if I had a Christmas card list, that vet would be on it.
NEWSMAGRENFREW 