Our Sweet Heloise

This time last week everything was fine. We had just come home from visiting a friend who sent a new toy to Heloise. She loved it so much all the pictures I took were blurry.

I went to bed that night and next thing I knew, it was 12:30 and Lee was waking me up. "I think something's wrong with Heloise."

Something was most definitely wrong. She was visibly bloated, drooling, and having difficulty breathing. We loaded her up and drove to the emergency vet. When Google Maps tells you the hospital is 15 minutes away, it seems like an eternity. Traffic rules go out the window.

When we arrived they took her back immediately. They knew exactly what was going on. I had suspected as well. It was bloat. I had been terrified of it happening when I had my borzoi, Oscar. I never would have guessed it could happen to a dog the size of Heloise.

They got x-rays and the vet came to get us. She showed us the film and it was the worst possible situation. Heloise's stomach had twisted.

The vet told us we had gotten there in time to surgically repair the torsion, but in a senior dog with kidney problems there were risks. First, the anesthesia would further damage her kidneys. That is if her kidneys could handle the anesthesia at all. Another possible scenario is that she could get in there and find cancer, as that sometimes happens when older dogs have twisted stomachs. They have no explanation as to why bloat happens in the first place, so they're not sure if there's a connection to cancer or not.

We opted to go ahead and let Heloise go gently to the Rainbow Bridge. Lee was devastated. She was his dog; he saved her from the shelter. He said goodbye to her, but couldn't stay in the room during the procedure.

I stayed. I held her and rubbed her ears, which she had always loved. I told her she was a good girl and that soon it wouldn't hurt anymore. She went quickly.

We had Heloise such a short time and there were so many things we hadn't gotten to do yet. This past Saturday was Barktoberfest at a local park and we were planning to take her. We planned to take her to Three Dog Bakery on the Plaza.

But for all the things she didn't get to do, there were lots of things she did do. We took her for frozen custard at Sheridan's.

She got to meet a miniature horse at PetSmart.

She got to warm her old bones in a cozy bed in front of a fire.

She even got to ride shotgun.

I will always cherish the sweet memories we made with this old grandma dog.

Hello, Homer

A week ago today, Homer the Blind Wondercat came to the Rainbow Bridge. His Mom & Dad didn't tell the world for a few days, giving them time to grieve privately.

The news hit everyone hard and Mama was no different. She shed some tears knowing what Homer's Mom was going through, wishing she could offer some comfort. Homer touched many people and changed many lives just by people knowing about him. Mama is especially thankful that his Mom wrote the book about him. It helped her make a very special friend.

Back in October of 2010, Homer's mom, Gwen Cooper, came to Kansas City to read from her book. Mama decided to go, even though she was going to have to go by herself. It turned out that I was tweeting with @Ryker_Tyker that day and found out his mom was going too! We worked it out so that our moms would meet at the reading.

It was a great night! Mama got to meet both Ryker's mom and Homer's mom! Mama and Ryker's mom have since become very special friends and it's all thanks to Homer and his mom.

I made sure to welcome Homer to the Rainbow Bridge and thank him purrsonally for leading Mama to such a good friend. 

My First Year at the Rainbow Bridge

It's been a year today since I made my journey to the Rainbow Bridge. I've got to say, it's great here!

Every day I nap on my fluffy cloud, run through nip fields, and eat my fill of salmon. I watch over Mama and send her purrs and smoochies every day. I hang out with my pals who are at the Bridge, too. For my friends who haven't made the journey, I watch over them as well as connect with them on Twitter.

I know how sad Mama is today and I understand why. We are the purrfect pair! She hates not having me around to cuddle with. I know it won't be long before we're together again, though. As good as things are here at the Bridge, that's the only thing that could make it better-having my Mama with me.

Don't worry about me, pals. If you miss me, I'm really not far way. Just look up in the sky and I'll wave to you from my cloud or twinkle my star for you.

Wordless Wednesday: RIP Blueberry

Heaven Got a Great Dog

Another pal has made the trip Over the Rainbow Bridge. Sterling the greyhound lost his battle with cancer yesterday. Sterling belongs to my good kitty friend from Twitter, Blueberry.


Sterling fought a brave battle for three years, undergoing chemo and amputation. It didn't slow him down though! He was a happy dog, smiling and running, just like nothing had ever happened. Don't believe me? Here's proof in a video he posted to YouTube.



His family threw a big party for him to celebrate his being cancer free that Mom actually got to attend virtually because they live-streamed it. They even had a camera set up so that his human could look in on the dogs from work. Sometimes Mom would look at them too!


Unfortunately, all three dogs in that fun video above-Sterling and his fursibs Rynn and Lyra-are now at the Rainbow Bridge due to cancer. Mom always felt something special for Sterling, not just because she loves his human and Blueberry so much, but because she lost her big dog Oscar to the same kind of cancer. Sterling gave her hope that doggies really could beat cancer even though she lost her dog-love to it. Even after Sterling's cancer came back last month, Mom was hopeful he would beat it again. I guess it wasn't meant to be.


Mom and I are sending much love to Blueberry and his family during this sad time. I'll miss hearing about Sterling and seeing the pictures Blueberry would post. I'll always remember him as a good, good dog.

**********

If you hate cancer as much as Mom does, you might be interested in this webchat she will be attending next week. OncoLink.org is hosting the webchat next Tuesday, August 7th, 2012 from 12:30 to 1:30 PM Eastern. The chat, When A Beloved Pet Has Cancer, will be held from the Oncology Department at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine and will focus on cancer in pets.

Wordless Wednesday-Sebastian's Memorial

Wordless Wednesday-Angel Sebastian

This Is Not Goodbye

As you probably know by know, I went Over the Rainbow Bridge late last Friday night. I had been very sick for a week, with no explanation as to what was wrong with me.


The previous Friday, Mom and Dad woke up to find that I had a barfisode in the living room. I spent the entire day in bed, only getting up when Dad picked me up and carried my out. I didn't eat at all, drank a little water and used my kitty box once. Mom and Dad thought I just had a tummy ache.


The next morning, Saturday, I was up and around on my own, but moving slowly. I had used my box again during the night. Dad convinced me to eat one of my favorite treats, a small piece of dried salmon, and some Whisker Lickin's treats. I continued to drink water, but never ate my kibble and didn't use my box any more that day.


When Sunday came and I still hadn't perked up, Mom and Dad took my to my V-E-T office, Banfield. I saw a doctor there that I had never seen before. She thought my situation was very dire, possibly hepatic lipidosis, a liver disease. I stayed there while they ran blood work on me. The doctor called Mom right away and said that it instead looked to be diabetic ketoacidosis and that I needed to go to the emergency and specialty hospital right away.


Mom and Dad rushed right back to get me and drove me to Blue Pearl where they were awaiting my arrival. The emergency vet looked me over and looked at the test results from Banfield. She said it was not DKA, because I didn't have any ketones. She didn't know what was going on though. She said I needed to stay so they could take care of me and find out what was wrong.


Over the next week, there were many ups and downs with my care. They kept running tests and ruling out different things, but still couldn't come up with any answers. My body temperature was low, my blood pressure was low, and my glucose was high. They had me on fluids to rehydrate me and get my BP up, however I then started having trouble breathing so they put me in an oxygen bed. Every time they would get one thing under control, something else would happen. I wasn't strong enough to use the litter box, so they put in a catheter. I HATED that thing! It was so uncomfortable.

In the oxygen bed.

Finally, on Friday, the internist who was caring for me told Mom and Dad that they didn't know what else to do for me, but if I was going to stay I needed a feeding tube because I hadn't eaten all week. Dad decided I should go home, thinking I might eat if I was in my home, in comfortable surroundings.

When Dad decided to take me home.

Mom and Dad took me home around 3 PM Friday. They gave me my medicine and syringe fed me a couple of times. I was so weak. I couldn't walk very well and I was having a hard time breathing. I walked to my water fountain to get a drink, but it was so difficult that in between laps of water, I rested my head on the edge of the bowl. Then I made my way to the bathroom where I laid on the tile. Mom felt me and I was very cold. I was uncomfortable, constantly changing positions. I hadn't slept since I had come home. I started to cry a little. Mom was sad to see me like that. She told Dad that I couldn't go on like that and they needed to take me back to Blue Pearl.


I rode in the back seat with Dad while Mom took us for my final car ride. The techs at Blue Pearl had a very hard time getting an IV in my paws because they were so swollen. Finally, they took me back in to Mom and Dad. By then it was shortly before 1 AM. Mom held me on her lap, talked to me, and gave me smoochies. Soon, I felt sleepy, then all the pain was gone. I could sense sadness from Mom and Dad, but I was so happy.


Now I'm at the Rainbow Bridge and things are wonderful! There are nip fields to run in and I can eat all the salmon I want. Mom is so very sad, but I know she'll feel better and one day we'll be together again. Leaving Earth is not goodbye.

Heavy Hearts for Jack the Cat

Me and Mom are very saddened to hear that Jack the Cat went Over the Rainbow Bridge today.

We were sending lots of prayers when he was lost that he would be found. When he finally was, we were thrilled. He got more prayers from us while he was undergoing treatment and we thought that he was on the road to recovery.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. He was just too sick to make it. We now send prayers to him, his human Karen, and all those that fell in love with him over this journey.

We know that the Rainbow Bridge is a beautiful place to be and he will wait for Karen without any more suffering.

Thinking About Rosie

Today is the one year anniversary of Mom's kitty Rosie making his journey to the Rainbow Bridge. He has been on her mind a lot and she thinks that he has been visiting her. Recently, he appeared to her in a dream. Unfortunately, he was old and ill, near the end of his life. Mom would have preferred that he appear young and healthy again, but it wasn't to be. The one thing that she found comforting is the fact that he looked her right in the eye and they had that moment of connection.

Another time Mom thinks Rosie was around was a couple of months ago in the bedroom. Mom keeps three boxes of ashes on a shelf in there: one box is Rosie, the other two were her dogs. Each box has the pet's collar on top of it. Twice, the first instance within a week of the second, Rosie's collar was on the bed. The first time, Mom walked into the bedroom and saw the collar on the bed. There was no way for it to fall there, as the bed is not under the shelf, but a couple of feet to the side of it. The next time was a bit spookier. Mom was standing by the bed with her back to the shelf. She was wrapping her hair up in a towel and heard a jingle. Since the towel was over her ears, the sound was muffled. She looked down and there was the collar on the bed once again.

Mom has no way of explaining these occurrences. It is even more baffling that the only collar that has moved from the shelf to the bed is Rosie's, not either of the dog collars. She figures it is his way of saying he is still around.

Mom misses Rosie a lot. He was with her for 17 years and it was very hard for her to move away and leave him with Grandma and Grandpa. She always felt like she abandoned him because she couldn't explain to him why she had to move. Even after a year, she still looks for him when she visits Grandma and Grandpa.

He was a very different cat than I am. Mom said he was street smart and that he understood English (more than just his name and words like "treat" and "outside", he was fluent). She said he was independent and did everything on his own terms. He was a tough guy. Now he's a kitty angel, letting Mom know, on his terms, that he's always with her.

Valentino's Journey-Part 3

This is the third and final post in a series about Valentino, Mom's favorite kitty at the shelter. You can read part one here and part two here.

On Friday, Mom made brownies for Dr. Pickett and Danny to thank them for their kindness. She took them to the shelter that afternoon. After dropping off the brownies at the vet clinic, she headed back to memorial services with a couple other volunteers. When she got there, Danny wasn’t there and Valentino’s ashes weren’t ready to be picked up. However, since she was there, she decided to ask for a tour of the facility. She was impressed at the services they provide and their level of professionalism. Just as she stepped out of the chapel room, Ryker’s mom walked in. They spent some time chatting and trying not to cry-not just about Valentino, but about other pets of theirs that had gone over the Rainbow Bridge as well. The circumstances brought up a lot of memories for both of them.

Our moms talked about what to do with Valentino’s ashes. Mom had wanted him cremated by himself because she couldn’t bear to think about his ashes being buried with a bunch of other ashes. She suggested scattering his ashes somewhere. Ryker’s mom felt like Valentino’s ashes should go home with Mom if that was what she wanted. Mom didn’t want Ryker’s mom left out though and felt bad taking them herself. Since she had to wait until Monday to even pick them up, she knew she had time to think about the situation.

Monday morning, Mom drove over to the shelter. She picked up Valentino’s remains and went straight home. When she got home, she opened the box and found an envelope that said “Valentino Palmer.” She was stunned. She never expected them to give Valentino her last name. The certificate in the envelope also mentioned Valentino being part of the Palmer family. She thought his name should be Valentino Volunteer since so many volunteers and staff loved him. But there it was, in black and white. She felt like it was a sign that she should keep his ashes like Ryker’s mom had said.

Mom has decided to keep Valentino’s ashes in the office where she helps me blog and tweet. She plans on getting a special shelf to sit them on so he can be a constant source of inspiration to us. With Valentino so close by, we will be reminded of why we do the work we do for homeless pets. We want them all to have families of their own, somebody to wait for at the Rainbow Bridge.

Valentino's Journey-Part 2

This is the second post in a series about Valentino, Mom's favorite kitty at the shelter where she volunteers and his journey to the Rainbow Bridge. The first part is here.

When the time came on Thursday, Mom went to the shelter and went directly to Valentino's kennel. She spent about 20 minutes with him, cuddling and kissing him, telling him what a good kitty he was. She explained the Rainbow Bridge to him and told him that Ryker would be there to greet him, along with many other animals. She said he could run in fields of catnip, eat an endless supply of tuna and that he would never be sick again. Mom told him that since he didn't have a family of his own to wait for at the Rainbow Bridge, that he could wait for her and she would be his family. She said they would be together again when the time came.

After a few treats and lots of petting, Mom went to tell Dr. Pickett that she was there. She went back to Valentino and the vet came in shortly after to give him a sedative to relax him, then left the two of them alone again. He rested on his bed and was soon snoring away, Mom still petting him and talking to him, giving him kisses on his cheek. After a few more minutes, Dr. Pickett came back with another vet. They brought Valentino out of his kennel to give him the final injection. Before Dr. Pickett started, Mom bent down close to Valentino's ear when the vet told her "He can still hear you. You can keep talking to him." Mom couldn't hold back the tears as she stroked Valentino and told him what a good kitty he was. She continued to talk to him about the wonderful things at the Rainbow Bridge until he left this world and his earthly body behind. Dr. Pickett moved him back to his kennel on his soft bed and covered him up. Mom spoke with him about what would happen with Valentino's body. Among several options, Dr. Pickett told her that he could be cremated by himself and she could get the ashes. Mom liked this option, but had to consider Ryker and Allie's mom's wishes as well as the financial side of it. They agreed to speak the next day about her decision, then Dr. Pickett told her she could have as much time with Valentino as she wanted.

She only stayed with him for a few minutes, feeling relieved that it was over and Valentino would never be sick again. She wanted to speak with the adoption counselor, Sharon, who is so loving and caring (she took great care of me while I was there!). Sharon immediately called the memorial services section of the shelter and worked it out with Danny to have Valentino cremated by himself at no cost! Mom was very touched that they would do that. She gave Sharon a big hug and told her that she would check back the next day.

On her way home, she stopped and bought a white candle and some white spider mums. Once home, she lit the candle, laid the flowers beside it and placed a magnet with Valentino’s likeness with them. We had a little memorial service for Valentino, thinking about how he was surely enjoying his new life at the Rainbow Bridge. It wasn’t much, but we knew we needed to honor the memory of this kitty who never had a home.

Tomorrow I will post the last part of this series about Valentino.

Valentino's Journey to the Rainbow Bridge

Many of you were aware of the sad news I shared on Twitter last week. Valentino, Mom's favorite kitty where she volunteers-her shelter love-was quite sick and had to be euthanized. We had such an outpouring of thoughts and pawprayers that I thought I would fill everyone in on the details. This will be the first post in a series about Valentino.

Mom visits the shelter every Wednesday. Last Wednesday she knew that Valentino was not on the adoption floor as he had been moved to a back area the week prior for what was believed to be a case of ringworm. Valentino had been dealing with some fur loss so they decided to quarantine him while he was being treated for the sake of the health of the other cats in the adoption area. She was saving him for last to go and visit so she wouldn't cross-contaminate the healthy kitties. Before she could visit him, though, she was paged over the intercom to go to the lobby. When she got there, the vet (Dr. Pickett, who I've mentioned before) was waiting for her. He verified that she was close to Valentino and took her back to see him.

When they got to Valentino's kennel, Dr, Pickett explained that Valentino was a very sick kitty. Mom was aware of his recurring upper respiratory infections, his bouts of lethargy and the fact that he had a herpes virus. Dr. Pickett went on to explain that he felt Valentino had feline leukemia, but that it was in his bone marrow and not showing up in the two blood tests they performed. Because Valentino had been picked up as a stray in an area known for a high number of cases of feline leukemia, Dr. Pickett was certain this was another one of his issues. He told Mom that he felt Valentino wasn't adoptable. He even spoke of a family who wanted to adopt him, but chose to go with another cat when his health issues were disclosed.

Mom understood the situation and knew that Dr. Pickett felt that euthanizing him was the most humane option. Mom looked at Valentino's eyes and could see how sick they looked. He had never been the most handsome kitty; his coat always seemed dirty and he felt grimy to the touch. He was a lover though and she couldn't resist petting him, no matter what his fur felt like. She agreed with the vet that Valentino didn't have a good quality of life; always sick and feeling poorly. Dr. Pickett said he would perform the procedure the next afternoon and Mom agreed to go in to be with Valentino as he made his way to the Rainbow Bridge.

Mom was miserable all Wednesday evening. She knew it was the right thing, but her heart still ached. She called her friend who volunteered at the shelter and also found Valentino to be a special kitty, @Ryker_Tyker and @Allie_Kitti's mom. She was out of town, but Mom felt she should know since the vet had wanted to speak to her as well. They discussed the situation and both tried to hold back the tears that continued anyway. Their shared love for this shelter kitty was obvious and the sadness was very real. They both knew how hard the next day was going to be.

Tomorrow I will continue the story of Valentino's Journey to the Rainbow Bridge with a recounting of Thursday's events.

Wordless Wednesday: Goodbye Valentino

A Blog For @Ryker_Tyker and @WaysideWaifs

Were you at #NipClub last night in honor of @Ryker_Tyker? If you weren't (or if you were and things are a little fuzzy today) and want a little overview, check out my guest post on Wayside Waifs' blog!

I know everybody is wondering so, drumroll please...We raised $85 for Wayside Waifs in Ryker's name at #NipClub last night! Of course it doesn't have to stop there just because #NipClub is over. You can continue to give and honor our friend Ryker. I hope you do!

Anipal Photo Hunt #12: All Souls' Day

This week's Anipal Photo Hunt is in celebration of All Souls' Day, a day to remember those who have passed on. Cokie explains it here.

Mom recently wrote a post about her doggy, Oscar, who went to the Rainbow Bridge on Halloween three years ago, so I thought I'd honor her Wichita cat, Rosie. He (yes, he) went to the Rainbow Bridge this past June, right before Mom and Dad left for Boston to get married. He was an old kitty, at least 17 years, and had been declining in health over his last year of life.

Mom had to leave him in Wichita when she moved to Kansas City, so he lived with Grandma and Grandpa. I never met him, but I knew all about him. Mom told me stories about how he would sleep with her at night and every morning they had a cuddle session. After she moved, he learned to cuddle with Grandma instead.

Rosie's favorite people food were cheese and tomatoes. He and Mom would go out on the front porch and eat a tomato together. When it wasn't tomato season, they would share a little can of tomato juice. He got cheese as a reward when he had to go to the vet or have medicine.

Mom was very sad when Rosie went to the Rainbow Bridge because she couldn't be there to help him. Grandma was there though and I know he understood Mom's absence. I'll meet him one day at the Rainbow Bridge; until then, I'll enjoy Mom's stories about him and honor his memory on days like All Souls' Day.

In Memory of Jimmy Dugan

Yesterday was a sad day at our house. Our fish, a betta named Jimmy Dugan, went to the Rainbow Bridge. He was the first pet Mom got when she moved here, so he lived over a year and a half. I guess that's a pretty good life for a fish.

I thought he was very fascinating when I first moved in. I could see him in his tank way up on the counter. I would sit on the floor and look up at him, watching him swim around, up and down. He was a pretty blue color (I can't believe Mom didn't have any pictures of him!) and had elegant, flowing fins. It was great entertainment for a kitty! Sometimes, when Mom was gone, I would get up on the counter next to him so I could have a better view.

Jimmy didn't have much to say, but he would swim up to greet Mom when she approached his tank. It was like he was saying, "Hi there! How's it going?" Now it's just an empty tank on the counter. I hope we get a new fish to watch, but I'll always remember Jimmy Dugan, my brofin.